Jun.10 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen is hoping to win at least one race in 2015.
After boss Maurizio Arrivabene gave the Finn “qualifying homework” to do after Monaco, Raikkonen duly lined up third on the grid in Montreal.
But at the same time, Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel suffered technical problems and also a further grid demotion for a red flag infraction in practice.
And then in the race, Raikkonen angered Arrivabene by spinning and “throwing away” a podium.
Only later did Arrivabene acknowledge that a technical issue contributed to the spin.
“Everything indicates that a technical problem was the cause, as we saw from the data that the throttle behaved in a brutal way,” he is quoted by Speed Week.
“Kimi’s race pace was good,” Arrivabene insisted.
However, a Ferrari insider said the timing of Raikkonen’s spin was nonetheless bad, as he is trying to convince Arrivabene to extend his contract for 2016.
“Even if the technology was a factor, the mistake came at the most inconvenient time possible,” the insider was quoted as saying.
“Ferrari is giving a lot of thought to the issue of the second driver for 2016.”
For his part, Raikkonen said he remains focused on 2015, telling Sky Italia this week: “I would be happy to win at least one race by the end of the season.
“I’m sure we can improve, to be more competitive and catch Mercedes, but it’s hard to say. We need time,” Raikkonen added.
Finally, Raikkonen admitted that he hopes his 5-month-old son Robin chooses a career other than formula one.
“Why?” Raikkonen said. “Because when I retire, I don’t want to be coming back here (to the paddock).”