Various sources say he’s good until the end of 2020...not sure i’d Have done 2 years...
Kimi's new contract put a stop to any idea of promotting Leclerc at the Scuderia. I hope he won't suffer the same fate Vandoorne is getting.
It makes sense but I'll wait for the announcement to come from Ferrari or Kimi. Leclerc to Haas? Though I like him at Sauber/Alfa so maybe another year there isn't such a bad idea.
Yeah I hope it's true as well. He's still fast and is the best #2 driver at the moment and doesn't create a toxic work environment playing that position.
https://f1only.fr/kimi-raikkonen-en-passe-de-prolonger-pour-deux-ans-avec-ferrari/ https://grandpx.news/raikkonens-new-contract-details-leaked/
Disappointing news. A good #2 driver takes points away from the #1 driver's rivals and at least disrupts their race. Kimi simply does not do this.
If its true about Kimi then maybe Seb will leave if he wins this years WDC...and Leclerc will partner with Kimi.
1 year too long. Actually 2. Sad. Kimi is not at all the answer but whatever Vettel wants. Predictable this was. New management and fear of change and fear of a driver. LeClerc should be given a chance to drive and grow in Ferrari. The world will not end but I guess Vettel will not sleep well. Joke.
If Kimi gets a 2 years contract he’ll bring his sleeping pillow in the car. Hope it’s not true and this Camilleri guy has the balls to bring forward Marchionne’s plan to promote Leclerc asap.
LeClerc isn’t quite ready yet, I don’t think, another year at least for Kimi, LeClerc kicks out grosjean at Haas for the next one, and then swaps with Kimi. Grosjean isn’t good enough for the top teams. By the way, Vandoorne has done short of nothing so how anyone says he is stagnating is beyond me, I don’t think he should be in F1 at all, he’s lucky no one wants to give his drive to a decent prospect, just the same as Hartley etc. I’d rather have Kimi as a clear number two than some wannabe number one that fights with Seb while he is trying to win a title, bringing in Ricci would have caused uproar akin to bringing Hakinnen to ferrari to partner schumi in 2000 or 2001 - we want a title at Ferrari, and the best way to go for it is a clear number one.
I wonder if it turns out to be a 1+1 contract ie second year is an option (not guaranteed) as these seem fairly typical
Jimmie: that's exactly what the french text says: one year firm, the next one as an option, depending on reaching some agreed signposts/results. This provided that their sources can be trusted, of course. Rgds
Exactly. This is also my understanding after reading both articles. It will be a 1 year contract with option for a second year extension. I understand that Ferrari goes for stability (I am a great Kimi fan myself), but cannot get my head around the fact that it seems that driver line-ups seem to be "decided" by the #1 drivers these days (Loulou at MB, Seb at SF, Nando at McL,...) I long for the days when there were loads of "interesting" intra-team driver dynamics/power struggles at play (Senna-Prost, Mansell-Piquet, ...) https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motorsport/formulaone/11711352/Murray-Walker-Anything-Piquet-could-do-to-unsettle-Mansell-he-would.html
Not taking any of these news things as gospel. Very unknown websites are claiming it... To my knowledge they'll be announcing a one year deal in monza.
And the original source seems to be one unique source in Spain, so yes, we should remain cautious. In the meantime, you might read his biography, which will be on sale tomorrow, provided that you can read in Finnish or Swedish... https://www.grandprix247.com/2018/08/13/raikkonen-to-release-first-book-this-week/ Rgds
And we all know the quality from teh Spanish news!! I think nothing is decided yet, i believe marchione wasa big suporter of both Charles and Gio, his death may afect them somehow...still would like to see charles in that Ferrari....Ferrari should not seak a number 2 to seb, but a better driver than him, and Kimi is not it...he was some 12 years ago!
What a disaster if true. A very sad day for the thousands of people that work day in day out to produce the best car they can only fit it to be given to a lazy, past it, no hoper. Disgraceful.
If it wasn't for Ferrari's own 2 failures (engine failure and pitstop failure), Kimi would be around 8-15 points behind Vettel. For a dedicated number 2, that's some good going.
If Ferrari want someone quicker than Vettel, and one that's available. Let them at it. But they'll need 2 things: Buy Vettel out of his contract (50 million+ lawsuit) and buy whichever driver they're interested in that's quicker out of his contract. Ricci just signed a fresh contract. Verstappen has an extremely lucrative contract with Red Bull (good luck getting into a bidding far with uncle Mateschitz), Hamilton is no quicker. And in a new, fresh contract. Who is available? Alonso. So you either seek out Alonso, who struggles developing a car and has a habit of toys throwing and team blaming, or you stick with Vettel, who seems to understand developing a car rather well and employs a more Schumacher esque approach to dealing with internal conflict and team resolutions. Is Vettel perfect? No. Is he good for Ferrari? Absolutely.
He is good. He has not won a title yet. Id like to see him do that this year. As far as FA goes. He was in Ferrari long enough and they didnt make a good enough car to win the title overall. FA made that possible with his ability to get more out of a car than any other driver on the grid. Id be happy to see himi again at Ferrari. So far no one else has his skill and certainly not Vettel who might finally be maturing but remains poorly time mistake prone more than most.
Put Alonso in todays car and I think he'd be leading the championship. I rate Vettel highly, but Alonso higher. When Alonso came to Ferrari, a car needed to be developed. Alonso lacks the input. As you rightly say, his ability made the car appear quicker than it was. But his major fault is that he can't seem to get what he wants from the cars, he can't communicate it or whatever the real reason is. Had he sorted that out, he'd have won a lot more titles. He'd have 2010, 2012. Had he been able to handle internal conflict better, he'd have 2007 as well. And 2008. Alonso could very easily have been a 6x WDC.
