Whitmarsh: Raikkonen is one of the fastest men on the planet
7 August, 2012
Martin Whitmarsh and Kimi Raikkonen on the podium after winning the 2005 Monaco GP
Aug.7 (GMM) McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has admitted he has been impressed by Kimi Raikkonen’s return to F1 in 2012, and shares insight on the Finnish driver who had a successful winning spell as part of the Woking team.
The pair worked together between 2002 and 2006, when the now 32-year-old won nine grands prix for McLaren.
Raikkonen switched to Ferrari in 2007, winning nine more races and the title, but after 2009 he quit Formula One to go rallying and NASCAR racing.
He has returned to F1 with Lotus this year, and despite not yet adding to his tally of career wins, the ‘Iceman’ is tipped as a dark horse for the 2012 championship.
When asked about Raikkonen, McLaren team boss Whitmarsh told Brazil’s Totalrace: “He is very talented.
“I think he is one of the fastest men on the planet,” He added, “People tend to underestimate Kimi, because of how little he talks. But he is a very intelligent and impressive driver.”
“The Lotus is a good car and so, put together, they’re a real threat,” said Whitmarsh.
“I’m sure you’ve noticed that Kimi does not make many mistakes; he always does a good job. So I’m not surprised and I think he has the ability to improve even more throughout the season,” he added.
Raikkonen’s former McLaren stablemate, Pedro de la Rosa, told Spain’s El Confidencial that Raikkonen is “definitely one of the best drivers I’ve ever seen”.
And at the wheel of the impressive black and gold E20, it looks like a winning combination.
“Well, it hasn’t won any races, so it’s not a winner,” Raikkonen insisted.
“We are still pretty happy but of course you want to do better. We’ll see what we can do in the second part [of the season],” he added.
Lotus’ technical boss James Allison thinks a shot at the title is not out of the question.
“Why not?” he asked the British broadcaster Sky.
“There are an awful lot of points for coming first and an awful lot of races left. The lead is miniscule compared to the points available.”
Subbed by AJN.
Related posts:
- Raikkonen: No better feeling than to get things going well in Monaco
- Raikkonen admits apprehension before Melbourne
- Raikkonen to be surprise of season says ex-teammate
- Lotus set fourth place target for Raikkonen led team
- McLaren boss welcomes Raikkonen F1 return
I think its naive to think that close pals should drive for the same team. Common sense dictates that it should be the opposite. Because… their friendship is quite important! this is not football, or Davis Cup, or doubles tennis..
If Webber retires i wish Kimi Replaces him to pair Seb it would be Very good as Kimi and Seb are Close pals
Is Whitmarsh wooing Kimi to replace Button??
I wish mclaren ends its career with kimi
I would also like to see Kim’s still McLaren. The circle closed championship title
@Jody Renza:
Would you rather have the cars break down without notice or would you rather have the team know in advance. Oh, and you couldn’t drive those cars without power-steering.
I think they’re pretty basic overall. No traction control, no fancy suspension, and they’ll get even better once the 2014 aero regs come into play.
Martin knows what he’s talking about seeing that he’s worked with the best…!!
It’s a pitty today’s cars are more computer-driven than relying on driver talent alone..
i thoght the fastest man was Usain Bolt, Martin !!
lol , hes right ,because Kimi can be very fast in races provided that he has the perfect setup and evrything configured his way. i would like to see him in Mclaren if button decides to leave the Woking based team/
quattro_T
martin stated his experience with kimi when he qualified with a slower car in top position!! Kimi has stated he found something in qualifying a setup related problem…nth to do with his speed~~ he is gettting better, and super fast in race~~ you can compare the stats at the end of season!!
You got to love Whitmarsh, but he states the obvious. KR is among the only 24 F1 drivers. Off course he is one of the fastest men on the planet
. Picture get more blurry though when considering qualy stats and compare to his team mate.
Move to Mclaren? Crazy right now. Brittish driver in the other car in combination with mr Ron being major shareholder – From experience we know that can end very badly for all parties. Not to forget the competiveness Lotus enjoyes ATM.
Mac is probably the fastest car on most tracks, and kim will fit well in it…but the stupid Ron is still around and he is good at spoiling the party…Coulthard knows, kim remembers and Alonso will never forget.
Kim…my advise…stay where you are…Lotus is among the strongest fastest around at the moment and you are doing a great job
hahahaaa no way is he gonna go back to Mclaren! You Mclaren fanboys can just stop dreaming right now. Why on earth would he go back to that crap team??? Mclaren couldn’t even provide him with a reliable car haha! What would be different now compared to 2003-2006? Yeah, he’s definitely going back to Mclaren…you must be joking!
Ha ha….. It looks like many people want to see him again in the Silver car
i want see him in RedBull
Yeah, Kimi, go back to McLaren. You’ll probably earn less than what Lotus pays you, but at least they’ll understand you.
Lotus is a perfect fit for him, provided they can provide the car.
go back to mclaren kimi~~~ the only team that understand you well~~
I wish Kimi ends his career in Mclaren…