Kimi slowly getting used to Ferrari car

Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen has been testing at Jerez this week as he continues to acclimatise to his new team. As well as getting used to a new car, the Finnish driver has to learn how to get the best out of Bridgestone tyres having been used to Michelin rubber at McLaren.

"It is getting better all the time but it takes time to get used to it," the 27-year-old told autosport.com."We still have some work to do, every day it is getting easier: I think we need to work on the car to make it work for me," he added.

Raikkonen debuts F2007

On Tuesday morning Kimi Raikkonen completed his first lap in Ferrari's F2007. The Finn completed an installation run in the wet at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia. In the afternoon Raikkonen continued his day of testing with Ferrari under better circumstances.

At the circuit in Vallelunga, Italy, Kimi Raikkonen covered his first miles in a Ferrari F1 car last week. With Ferrari's 2006 contender, the 248 F1, Raikkonen had to deal with bad weather at the Italian track. This week he is scheduled to test Ferrari's 2007 contender, but his test began once again in bad weather. In the afternoon Raikkonen began his proper test session with the car and completed more laps. His car was not fitted with a transponder and thus it is impossible to follow his lap times on the timing screens…

Kimi says 'Buongiorno' to Ferrari

"Buongiorno a tutti" were Kimi Raikkonen's first official words as a Ferrari driver when he addressed journalists at the Madonna di Campiglio press meeting in Italy today. It earned him a round of applause as members of the press perhaps compared him to his predecessor, Michael Schumacher, who managed the same words after several years!

Everyone, of course, wanted to know how Kimi was handling the transformation from McLaren driver to Ferrari driver, from the silver of what is perceived as the austere combination of McLaren and Mercedes to the red of the most legendary team in Formula One.

"When I first went to the factory and for the test I noticed the atmosphere is different, is very good," said the Finn. "It's more like a family feeling, even if people are working as hard as they can, doing their best, it's very relaxed and the people are easy to work with so I was very happy and that's really what I expected and what I heard before, so I only have positive things to say. For sure, it's very different from McLaren. For me, it's only going in a positive way, so it's been very pleasant."

Even the Ferrari colour suits him. "I think red is more warm for sure. It's very nice. I like the style of the team, with everything. Of course it is a bit special to wear the Ferrari clothing for the first time and the racing suit is new and exciting. It's always nice." Kimi certainly looked in good form, and was more relaxed than has been the case in the past. "I was taking things easy at home at Christmas. I haven't had much else to do. It's the most time that you have for those things and I don't know if I've done more or less, I don't count it. I do what I like to do and I think I'm in good shape and that's the only thing that matters.

Raikkonen: Working at Ferrari is easy

Kimi Raikkonen joined Ferrari at their annual Wroom event in the Dolomites for the first time. The Finn said that working at Ferrari has been going nice and smoothly in the first two weeks.
Speaking with the press Raikkonen said: "So far it has been easy working with the team. Things are much easier here and its so far the easiest team I have worked with in Formula 1."

"Some people expected it to be difficult to work at Ferrari but I think its completely the opposite. I expect a strong relationship in the upcoming season and enjoy my time at Ferrari."

Raikkonen had other options

Kimi Raikkonen will join Ferrari in January as the team's new race driver. The Finn will replace Michael Schumacher and race in 2007 alongside Felipe Massa. But according to Raikkonen there were also other options.
There were many speculations throughout the seaon. Where would Raikkonen go? Would he stick with McLaren? Would he swap places with Fernando Alonso and join the RenaultF1 team or would he join Ferrari? He joined the Italian team as Schumacher's replacement. But Ferrari wasn't the Finn's only option for next year. "Of course every driver would love to join Ferrari," Raikkonen told Swiss magazine 20Minutes. "But if it wouldn't be like that I would have had other opportunities."

Raikkonen's Ferrari will be different

LONDON, (Reuters) -- Michael Schumacher's retirement marked the end of an era for Formula One and Ferrari's managerial shake-up last week brought down the curtain on another.
When Kimi Raikkonen reports for duty at Maranello for the first time in January, Schumacher's replacement will find a very different team to the one of his illustrious predecessor. The Finn will still communicate, as did the seven times world champion before him, in English, but the team will be more Italian. The 'Dream Team' so closely associated with Schumacher's success is no more.
Technical director Ross Brawn and engine expert Paolo Martinelli are leaving, while Jean Todt is likely to hand over the running of the team in the not-too-distant future. Designer Rory Byrne has taken a back seat since 2004.
Another team, whose faces are largely unknown beyond the factory walls, has been promoted to take their places.
New Generation
Briton Brawn, the master strategist who was a key figure in all of Schumacher's titles with Benetton and then Ferrari, is taking a sabbatical. Todt has been promoted to chief executive of the Ferrari group, with president Luca di Montezemolo saying at Monza last weekend that he would remain team boss for an interim period.
It is entirely conceivable that Brawn could return in 2008 as Todt's successor, possible with Schumacher's assistance, but next year his role will be filled by Mario Almondo, previously head of human resources, with Stefano Domenicali as sporting director.
South African Byrne -- who penned the cars that won Ferrari's six successive titles from 1999 to 2004 -- remains a design consultant but already spends much of his time in Thailand, with Aldo Costa now the main man. Engine director Paolo Martinelli moves to parent Fiat and is replaced by Frenchman Gilles Simon, his close assistant.
Most of the new generation are in their 40s and the big question is how much the handover will affect Ferrari's performance. Once-dominant Williams have not been the same since top designer Adrian Newey departed in 1997, even if there are plenty of other reasons for that.
When Newey left McLaren for Red Bull in 2005, the team highlighted the fact that the departure was amicable and expected, with the designer fully involved in restructuring the technical team prior to going.
The fact remains that McLaren, for whatever reason, have not won a race since the day Newey left.
A winning team has been broken up but both Brawn and Byrne are confident that the transition will be painless -- indeed that it has been proven to be so already -- and that Ferrari will remain the team to beat.
Best continuity
"I think Ferrari has possibly got the best continuity," Brawn said during the weekend. "All the guys who are now designing the car and running the team are the guys who have been doing it for the past few years. So although I'm leaving and Michael's leaving, most of the structure is still there.
"It's important there is a 'clear the decks' time for them to get on with the job and show what they can do," he added. "They are my proteges and nothing would make me prouder than for them to do a better job than I've been able to do."
Ferrari will have the advantage of years of working with Bridgestone, who become Formula One's sole tire suppliers next year following Michelin's departure, and have been planning for some time for what Montezemolo referred to as the third era of his Ferrari presidency.
"I think Ferrari will continue to be strong, I see no reason why not," Byrne had told Reuters in September when Schumacher announced his retirement.
"The 2004 car was the last I was responsible for and you've seen a car out there that was just as competitive, that's going well and is reliable. We've achieved the transition from me being responsible for the car to Aldo and Nikolas (Tombazis)."
Raikkonen, a very different character to Schumacher, may bring far more of a change to his new surroundings. But if he makes a winning start to his Ferrari career, it will soon seem like business as usual.

Massa won't slow down for Raikkonen

Now Schumacher has retired from Formula 1 a new era will begin at Ferrari. Kimi Raikkonen will join Felipe Massa in January 2007. Massa said he welcomes the Finn but won't raise his foot from the pedal.

Felipe Massa will start preparing the Ferrari for 2007 at the end of November alongside Ferrari's test drivers. Kimi Raikkonen will have to wait for his first outing until January. Alongside Schumacher, Felipe Massa was doing everything he could to help the team and Schumacher to win the title, but next year it will be different. "I will not raise my foot from the pedal to Kimi can pass me," Massa told Gazzetta dello Sport. "When I joined Ferrari I knew I was going to be their second driver. I have helped where I could and I think I have done well. Now we're on an equal level so I won't be lifting my foot for him."

Kimi makes the wrong headlines again (The only driver to miss Pele's presentation)

Following the season ending Brazilian grand prix, Kimi Raikkonen has returned to the headlines for the wrong reasons. The Finn, bidding to finish his McLaren career on a high with a front row start, was interviewed on the Interlagos grid by British broadcaster ITV's Martin Brundle. Brundle observed that Raikkonen, 27, was the only driver to miss Pele's presentation of a gold trophy to Michael Schumacher, whom he replaces at Ferrari in 2007 and beyond. "Yeah," Kimi answered. "You'll get over it, then ?" Brundle asked sarcastically. Raikkonen answered : "Hey, I was having a sh*t.
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""Thanks for that," Brundle recoiled. "At least you'll have a nice light car on the grid ..."Tabloid newspapers in England reported that ITV were 'inundated' with complaints from viewers of the live feed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILmODpW92r8

Iceman not too sad about final race at McLaren

Kimi Raikkonen will race his last Grand Prix this weekend in Brazil for the McLaren Formula 1 team. The 'Iceman' will join emotional Ferrari team next season and is excited about the upcoming year.

Looking ahead of his final race Raikkonen said: "It is the last race, but then it was coming at some point. It is one way a sad thing for nice people and good friends and so on, but then I made my decision to move and I am happy where I am going and I am excited about next year and hopefully can go far." It is expected that McLaren won't release Raikkonen from his contract and thus the Finn will be not able to test the Ferrari until January 2007. Raikkonen is not worried about Ferrari's preparations though for 2007. "They will be testing in the winter and Felipe will be driving, so anything that is new will be done. January will be enough time for me to get ready for the season."

Raikkonen wants to leave McLaren with win

Kimi Raikkonen is determined to give McLaren Mercedes one more Grand Prix victory in his final race for the team next weekend at Interlagos. Raikkonen has taken nine wins in five seasons with the team.
"I am of course sad to be leaving the team," said Raikkonen who heads off to Ferrari to replace Michael Schumacher. "We have had some great times together and it would be fantastic to go out with a win. It is going to be tough, but we are all pushing hard to try and make it happen."McLaren is facing its first winless season since 1996, unless Raikkonen or team mate de la Rosa can spring a surprise in Brazil.