Exhaust Problem Disturb Kimi's Magny Cours Weekend

This post's title is the most fit sentence to express what had happened last weekend on Magny Cours GP race day. After a good start from testing day to pole position on qualifying day, Kimi got an engine problem that caused him second position at the end of the race, despite of the fastest lap he recorded. A broken exhaust, that was the one which 'disturbs' Kimi's weekend! I wrote 'disturb', not 'ruin' as, despite of the broken exhaust that caused lack of the car power, Kimi was still able to finish safely and score 8 points on P2. His team mate, Massa has successfully won the race, while Hamilton didn't score any point this time.

How do I feel about this failure ? I am disappointed of course, but looking at how Kimi can still scored the fastest lap with the power problem in his car, I believe Kimi is one of the best drivers of this season, and his chance to win the championship is the biggest among the others. Do I need to underline how Kimi made his fastest lap while he was in P2 (behind Massa) with the problem in his car? Impressive! That's Kimi! And that's a value that can help him repeat last year sweet victory in Silverstone. Welcome Silverstone, wait for Kimi's revenge this weekend...

Good Start at Magny Cours

The F1 racing has come back to Europe. Magny Cours GP has been sweet histories for Kimi. Is it going to happen this weekend, when he is 7 points ahead from Hamilton after the long bad weekend ? Of course! Kimi has showed signals of leading the race when he leads Massa in qualifying session, and grab the 200th pole position for Ferrari at the same time.

Looking at the good results both during free practice and the qualifying session, and considering that Kimi's main contenders (Hamilton and Kubica) will not start from the front rows, I can feel the atmosphere of victory tomorrow! If Hamilton could only finish in P9 or more, Kimi will come back to the championship. Let's see....

Retiring Issue...Again!

This is an interesting post from Edmontonsun.com :

'In only his second season behind the wheel of Formula One's lead Ferrari, Finland's Kimi Raikkonen said yesterday that retirement after his current contract ends is a real possibility.

The defending world champion shocked questioners when he was asked what his plans were when his Ferrari deal runs out after next season.

"I like the racing (but) the other stuff is not always the best thing," the 28-year-old Raikkonen said, referring to the constant glare drivers find themselves under.

" ... When there are too many things that you don't enjoy or too many things you don't want, it is time to go away.

Rumours already have started that Ferrari has designs on McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Renault's two-time champion Fernando Alonso.'

My comment ? If the 2008 season is going to be Kimi’s last season in F1 career, then I would not miss every race from now on. And of course, I really want Kimi to close his F1 career with world champion title. Whatever his decision would be, for me Kimi is one of very quick and skilled driver in F1 with his unique personal character!

A Bitter Loss At Canada GP

This time I’m 5 days behind from the race day of Canada GP to publish my post. The main reason was because of my preparation for my new career in internet business. But I also find it difficult to put my feelings in words! Although I didn’t see the race from television (the different time of Indonesia and Canada is 12 hrs, so the race was broadcasted at 12 am, while I was still asleep), I felt very disappointed to find that Kimi cannot finish the race after being smashed from behind by Hamilton. And this happened not in the race (which would counted as an incident), but in the pit lane!

After that rare accident, I searched in the internet for news. What the media and reporters had to say about the accident? What really happened there? Was that a common accident that can happen to any driver at any race? Or…was it a human error or silly mistakes by a non-experienced driver? Well, I got a lot of interesting news. Some of them said it was Hamilton’s fault and he deserved the 10 start position penalty at the next Magny Cours GP (Kimi included in this group), but some of them thought it was unfair for Hamilton being punished for slamming other car from behind, while Kimi could walk away from punishment when he did almost the same to Sutil back to Monaco.

Well, I personally think that all F1 drivers are professional and extraordinary drivers, but they are also human. There were times when they did awesome manouvre on the circuit which invites many people to salute them. But time would come when they appear like totally rookie and made stupid mistakes. Even a legend like Michael Schumacher did this kind of mistake during his career. And at those hard times, the best thing to do is to calm down, cool down, and be focused on the next races, to fight back for title, to do the best and to show their actual skill.

I hope Kimi will do the same thing after the Canada GP, and I wait for his win at Magny Cours. It’s been a long time since I cheered on his victory, really enjoy F1, and write a joyful post in this blog!

Is Raikkonen really going to wave goodbye in 2009? Or maybe....?

More speculation on Kimi's retirement issue :

written by: Bryn Evans

The current world champion, Kimi Raikkonen, is rumoured to be quitting formula 1 in 2009 when his current contract with Ferrari expires.

Sources close to Raikkonen have been saying that the champion no longer has the passion to fulfill his commitments off track and therefore will not be renewing his contract after 2009.

Are we to believe that Kimi has gone as far as he can? I think not. Unfortunately for Kimi there would not be many options open to him for a career beyond an F1 driver. Fair enough, his money has been made he doesn't need to work to pay the bills, but for someone who has a strict regime day in day out, how easy will it be to slip into a life with no goals and no purpose.

I don't think we are seeing the last races from the Finn just yet, maybe the prospect of Fernando Alonso as a team mate is not ideal in his eyes and maybe therefore a change is on the cards, and that change? BMW Sauber.

As I understand it, Kimi would relish the chance to prove he is the best driver and going back to his roots would be the ideal option for him. BMW Sauber have proved this year that they are fast becoming strong title contenders in the making but for that they need a world class driver, enter Kimi, the Finn would love the chance to return to BMW Sauber. Whilst driving for Ferrari is a dream for any driver, it is now a dream that Raikkonen has lived and for a man that hurtles round a track at 200mph for a living the challenges and goals need to be there.

Kimi know he can drive a Ferrari to another 5 world championships, but where's the challenge in that. He is no different from any Joe Bloggs, he want to feel pushed to the limit, he needs new goals to stay interested and driving for BMW Sauber would give him that.

So will the Finn be retiring? I think not.

Feel How Kimi Speeding At Monaco!

Click here to watch a short video of Kimi riding his F2008 at Monaco.