Get to know F1 Drivers: Kimi Raikkonen

 Hi, this week I'm introducing Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi-Matias Räikkönen (born 17 October 1979), nicknamed "The Iceman", is a Finnish racing driver who competed in Formula One between 2001 and 2021 for Sauber, McLaren, Ferrari, Lotus, and Alfa Romeo. Räikkönen won the 2007 Formula One World Championship driving for Scuderia Ferrari, their last World Drivers' Championship to date. He also managed to finish second overall in 2003 and 2005, and third in 2008, 2012 and 2018. With a total of 103 podium finishes, he is one of only five drivers to have achieved over 100. Räikkönen has won 21 Grands Prix, making him the most successful Finnish driver in terms of Formula One race wins, and is the only driver to win in the V10, V8 and the V6 turbo hybrid engine eras.

Early life/career

Räikkönen was born in Espoo, Finland. He had a long line of success in karting from the age of 10. His first race outside Finland was in Monaco when he was 15 years old. During the race, the steering wheel broke, but he continued, informing his mechanic by frantically waving the steering wheel in the air on the home straight. Räikkönen's next Monaco race was also memorable; he was thrown on the wrong side of the safety fence in a first lap collision but continued driving until running out of road. Undeterred, he lifted his kart back onto the track and continued to race. His mechanic thought Räikkönen had retired, but he eventually caught up with the other competitors and finished third. In 1998 he was first in the Nordic Championship at Varna in Norway. In 1999, Räikkönen placed second in the European Formula Super A championship for the Dutch PDB Racing Team – run by 1980 world champion Peter de Bruijn – utilising a Gillard chassis. He also competed in the Formula Ford Euro Cup. By the age of twenty, he had won the British Formula Renault winter series of 1999, winning the first four races of the year. In 2000, he won seven out of ten events in the Formula Renault UK Championship. Combined, over these two series of Formula Renault, he won 13 out of 23 events – a 57% win rate.

2001-2009 Formula One

2001 Sauber

On the basis of these results, Peter Sauber gave the Finn a test with the Sauber Formula One team in September 2000 at the Mugello Circuit. On just the second day of the test, Räikkönen lapped half a second quicker than regular driver Pedro Diniz. Sauber had kept the news of his test quiet to distract potential competitors, internally referring to Räikkönen as "Eskimo". After further tests in Jerez and Barcelona, Sauber signed Räikkönen for the 2001 season. However, some critics (including FIA president Max Mosley) voiced concerns over granting an F1 Super Licence to such an inexperienced driver; Räikkönen had only 23 car races to his credit. He was nevertheless granted his licence from the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) after a performance delivery promise by his team boss, Peter Sauber, and scored a championship point in his debut at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix. Reportedly, Räikkönen was asleep 30 minutes before the race.

Räikkönen had a solid debut year, achieving four points-scoring finishes and eight finishes in the top eight. Completing the year with 9 points, Räikkönen, along with teammate Nick Heidfeld, helped Sauber to what was then its best result of fourth place in the Constructors' Championship.

2002-2006 McLaren

Räikkönen, long linked to Sauber's engine supplier Ferrari, sufficiently impressed McLaren to earn a race seat in Ron Dennis's team for 2002, taking the seat left vacant by double-world champion, mentor and fellow Finn Mika Häkkinen. The decision to choose Räikkönen over his Sauber teammate, the Mercedes linked Nick Heidfeld, was heavily influenced by Häkkinen who repeatedly told Ron Dennis "If you wanna win, get the Finn."

Räikkönen scored a third-place podium finish in his first race with McLaren, the 2002 Australian Grand Prix. Although McLaren suffered many engine failures in 2002, Räikkönen scored 24 points and four podiums, and held his own against teammate David Coulthard. Räikkönen came close to winning his first Grand Prix in France but went off track at the Adelaide hairpin with a handful of laps to go, because of oil from the blown engine of Allan McNish's Toyota on the circuit. He finished the race second. He finished the season in sixth place, one place behind his teammate. Together they achieved a solid third place for McLaren in the Constructors' Championship.

Räikkönen at the United States Grand Prix in 2002

At the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified 15th in the spare car. In the race he took the lead before being caught speeding in the pitlane, caused by a software glitch in the car's electronic system. Räikkönen held off Michael Schumacher to finish third. In Malaysia, Räikkönen won his first race after starting from seventh on the grid. During the next round in Brazil, Räikkönen was declared the winner after the race was stopped on lap 55. According to the rules the winner is decided by the race order as of two laps before the race stopped, i.e. lap 53. However a week later, evidence emerged that Giancarlo Fisichella was on lap 56 when the race stopped, therefore the winner was decided by the order at lap 54. This granted the win to Fisichella, with Räikkönen second.

As other teams improved their cars, McLaren, who were still using the 2002 chassis, began to falter in terms of race speed. However, Räikkönen finished second at Imola. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen made a mistake in qualifying and had to start from the back of the grid. At the start of the race, he collided with Antônio Pizzonia, who was stuck on his grid position owing to a launch control problem, causing Räikkönen to retire from the race.

The next few races came down more to strategy rather than speed. While having engine problems, Räikkönen successfully defended second position from Rubens Barrichello in Austria. He came extremely close to winning in Monaco, but lost by less than a second to Juan Pablo Montoya. Starting from the pitlane in Canada after he went off track during qualifying with understeer, Räikkönen finished sixth, more than a minute adrift of race winner Michael Schumacher.

At the European Grand Prix, Räikkönen took pole, and controlled the race from the start until his engine failed on lap 25. Title rival Michael Schumacher finished fifth taking 4 points advantage from Räikkönen. Räikkönen finished fourth in France behind Schumacher, but finished one point ahead of him with a third-place finish at the British Grand Prix. Räikkönen failed to finish the German Grand Prix after being involved in an accident at the first corner with Ralf Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello. Räikkönen finished second at the next race, the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Before the Italian Grand Prix, the FIA were tipped-off by rivals Ferrari about an illegality in the Michelin tyre's tread width. Michelin were forced to bring in narrower tyres and it seemed as if they had lost the advantage they had been enjoying over Bridgestone all season. McLaren also announced that they would see out the season with the old MP4-17D chassis and would not bring out the MP4-18 as had been planned. Räikkönen eventually finished fourth in the race, losing five championship points to race winner Michael Schumacher.

Räikkönen took pole at the United States Grand Prix, but Michael Schumacher won the race with Räikkönen finishing second. With one race to go, Schumacher only needed one point to win the championship. Räikkönen would need to win the next race with Schumacher not scoring any points. After qualifying eighth in Japan, Räikkönen finished second while Michael Schumacher just slipped into the points to win his sixth World Championship. Montoya's retirement during the race also meant that Räikkönen finished second in the championship, just two points behind Schumacher. The team also narrowly lost second place in the Constructors' Championship, finishing third, two points behind runners-up Williams, and 12 points behind Ferrari. Mathematically, Williams or McLaren could have won the championship at the final race. The 2003 season was one of the closest of the 2000s.

The 2004 season began with Räikkönen only claiming a single point in the first seven races. His McLaren, especially the Mercedes engine, suffered repeated breakdowns, allowing him to complete just two of the first seven events. After seven rounds Räikkönen had only one point to Michael Schumacher's 60. In Canada, Räikkönen made 5 pit-stops but was classified fifth since the Williams-BMWs and the two Toyotas were disqualified. At the United States Grand Prix, Räikkönen finished sixth.

Despite the disappointment of the 2004 season, Räikkönen was still seen as one of the rising stars of the sport, along with BAR's Button, Renault's Alonso and 2005 McLaren teammate Montoya. Many pundits predicted 2005 to be filled with great on-track battles from a resurgent team. He was also referred to by Ross Brawn and Jean Todt as a driver whom Ferrari might consider in the future. In early November 2004, Räikkönen announced his intention to create a racing team with his manager Steve Robertson, to be entitled Räikkönen Robertson Racing (otherwise known as "Double R"), which would compete in Formula Three in 2005.

Räikkönen at the 2005 Canadian Grand Prix

Räikkönen's start to the 2005 season was less than perfect. The car was reported to be too soft on its Michelin tyres, with the result that it was not generating enough heat to post competitive qualifying times. The best qualifying position that a McLaren driver could manage in the first 3 races was sixth. Räikkönen compounded this by stalling on the grid of the first race of the season, the Australian Grand Prix, and ending the race with just a point. He looked set for a podium in Malaysia until a faulty tyre valve failed and dropped him out of the points. Bahrain saw him achieve his first podium of the season with a third place behind Renault's Alonso and the Toyota of Jarno Trulli.

Räikkönen then achieved three consecutive poles in San Marino, Spain, and a win after a safety car strategy call by Neil Martin at Monaco. An almost certain win was denied at Imola after a driveshaft failure, but he won the other two races, putting him within 22 points of leader Alonso. He registered strong, comfortable wins at Barcelona, beating Alonso, and at Monte Carlo, never dropping his lead in both races. At the European Grand Prix, Räikkönen flat-spotted his right front tyre while lapping Jacques Villeneuve. The resultant vibrations caused his suspension to fail while he led on the final lap, sending him into the tyre wall and handing a further ten points to his rival Alonso. Changing a tyre would have given him a relatively safe third place. However, tyre changes were only allowed in 2005 in cases where a "punctured or damaged tyre" could be changed for "clear and genuine safety reasons" and there was no precedent for whether the stewards would consider a flat-spotted tyre dangerous enough. This incident, in part, resulted in a rules clarification allowing teams to change a flat-spotted tyre without punishment.

Alonso's first major mistake of the 2005 season handed the Canadian Grand Prix to Räikkönen. The following weekend saw all the Michelin teams, including McLaren, withdraw from the United States Grand Prix for safety reasons. At the French Grand Prix, Räikkönen suffered a ten-place grid-penalty following the replacement of his new specification Mercedes Benz engine which failed in Friday practice. Räikkönen, putting in what Ron Dennis called his best ever qualifying lap, qualified third (demoted to 13th) with a significant fuel load. He finished second behind Fernando Alonso. A week later at the British Grand Prix, Räikkönen suffered another Mercedes engine failure due to an oil leak; his second-place qualifying place became 12th. He claimed third place in the race.

In Germany, Räikkönen was comfortably in the lead having dominated all weekend, but suffered a hydraulics failure, handing victory and a further 10 points to Alonso. It was his third retirement while leading a race during the season. On all three occasions, it was championship rival Alonso who took advantage to win. Significantly, at the opening of the Hungarian Grand Prix, though saying he was very comfortable at McLaren, Räikkönen raised the possibility that he might leave McLaren when his contract expired in 2006, if reliability issues were not solved. He told a news conference, "We need to work in a better way just to make sure that the car is very reliable." However he went on to take the chequered flag with a convincing victory over Michael Schumacher, albeit after McLaren teammate Montoya retired with driveshaft failure while leading.

Räikkönen won the Hungarian Grand Prix from the most handicapped qualifying position, having had to do his qualifying run first on the notoriously dusty and dirty track because of his early retirement a week earlier at Hockenheim. No other driver had previously managed this feat. Räikkönen then became the first ever winner of the Turkish Grand Prix. Two weeks later at the Italian Grand Prix, Räikkönen's pole position was taken from him as he received another 10-position grid penalty for an engine change. It would emerge that he had 5 laps of fuel more than teammate Montoya and 6 more than Alonso during qualifying yet still managed to outpace them.[citation needed] During the race, Räikkönen was forced to take an extra stop when his left-rear tyre delaminated, which dropped him down to 12th. He recovered, but spun his car after pushing too hard while chasing Giancarlo Fisichella. He eventually finished fourth.

He went on to win for the second year in a row in Belgium at Spa-Francorchamps. The following race, the Brazilian Grand Prix, saw Alonso clinch the Drivers' Championship after finishing third behind Montoya and Räikkönen. In the penultimate race of the year, at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan, Räikkönen took his seventh victory of the season after starting 17th on the grid (as rain, and an engine failure for Räikkönen, had mixed up the qualifying grid). The win was secured when he overtook Renault driver Fisichella (who had started third on the grid, and had led most of the race) on the final lap – which Formula One journalist Peter Windsor thought the most impressive move of the race.

Räikkönen received the F1 Racing "Driver of the Year" accolade, and the Autosport "International Racing Driver of the Year" award.

Räikkönen testing for McLaren at Silverstone in April 2006

In Bahrain, Räikkönen suffered electronic problems during Friday practice and a spectacular rear suspension breakage during the first qualifying session, which forced him back to 22nd place on the grid. Nevertheless, he drove through the field, ending third behind Alonso and Michael Schumacher. In Malaysia, Räikkönen was hit from behind by Red Bull Racing's Christian Klien on the first lap. The impact caused a left rear suspension failure resulting in Räikkönen retiring from the race.

Having started the year clearly behind Renault, McLaren improved in Australia, where Räikkönen finished second after flat spotting a tyre and losing a wing end-plate, which caused him to fall off the pace somewhat around the midpoint of the race. Chasing down Alonso during the final stages of the race, he set the fastest lap of the race on the final lap, finishing only 1.8 seconds behind the Spaniard. At the San Marino Grand Prix, a bad choice of strategy and a mistake from Räikkönen in qualifying saw the McLarens get caught in traffic in the early part of the race allowing Michael Schumacher and Alonso to get away at the front. Räikkönen eventually finished fifth, with teammate Montoya ahead in third place. McLaren team boss Ron Dennis blamed what he deemed to be Räikkönen's poor performance for the team's failure to finish in the top two in the race.

At the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified ninth. However, he managed to get up to fifth place on the first lap of the race. He retained this position for most of the race, finishing in fifth place. A few days after the Spanish Grand Prix, he admitted that he had no chance of winning the 2006 Championship. In Monaco, Räikkönen qualified third. During the race he got up to second and kept pace with Alonso, however he retired during a safety car period after a failed heat shield led to a wiring loom inside the car catching fire. After the retirement he was seen on live TV walking along the Monaco sidewalks with his helmet still on to the harbour and climbing aboard a yacht.

The British Grand Prix at Silverstone saw Räikkönen qualify second behind Alonso and in front of Michael Schumacher. The running order was Alonso, Räikkönen, Schumacher until the second set of pitstops where Räikkönen was demoted to third by Schumacher, a position he held until the end of the race. In Canada, Räikkönen achieved another podium. In the United States Grand Prix, his teammate punted him out in an expensive seven car accident. The French Grand Prix saw Räikkönen qualify his car in sixth. His teammate was now former test driver Pedro de la Rosa in place of Montoya. Räikkönen ended the race in fifth. In Germany, Räikkönen qualified on pole. After a battle with Jenson Button, he finished the race for the first time in his career, ending in third place. Another pole came in Hungary, but he collided with Vitantonio Liuzzi after 25 laps, causing his fourth retirement of the season.

A first turn incident with Scott Speed at the Turkish Grand Prix led to an exploded tyre and suspension damage. After a tyre change, Räikkönen's race ended halfway into the next lap when he crashed into the barrier at turn 4 because of a loss of rear grip. Räikkönen qualified on pole for the Italian Grand Prix by 2 thousandths of a second from Michael Schumacher. He led the early part of the race until the first pitstops where he was passed by Schumacher. He stayed in second place for the rest of the race. After the race, Schumacher announced that he would retire at the end of the season. Later, Ferrari announced that he would be replaced in the 2007 season by Räikkönen.

The Chinese Grand Prix saw another retirement for Räikkönen due to throttle problems. His last two Grands Prix, in Japan and Brazil, did lead to 2 finishes, but he missed the podium on both occasions. Räikkönen ended his time at McLaren-Mercedes with a fifth place in the World Drivers' Championship, with McLaren placing third in the World Constructors' Championship at the end of a winless year.

2007-2009 Ferrari

After the 2006 Italian Grand Prix, Ferrari announced that Räikkönen had signed a three-year contract with Scuderia Ferrari for the 2007–2009 seasons. Räikkönen said after the move that he was very happy with this change of events but wished McLaren the best of luck in the future. He became the teammate to Brazilian Felipe Massa, who had been driving for Ferrari since 2006.

Räikkönen celebrating victory and the world title at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix

Räikkönen started the season in Australia by taking pole position, setting the fastest lap, and becoming the first driver since Nigel Mansell in 1989 to win his first Grand Prix with Ferrari.

At the Malaysian Grand Prix, Räikkönen was passed by Lewis Hamilton at the start and remained behind him for the rest of the race, finishing third. In Bahrain, Räikkönen started from third but was passed by McLaren driver Fernando Alonso. He eventually regained third position from Alonso and finished the race third. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen retired after only 10 laps with an electrical problem. This took him down to fourth position in the Championship, behind team-mate Felipe Massa. At the Monaco Grand Prix, Räikkönen struck a barrier in qualifying and broke his right front suspension. He started 16th and finished eighth.

In Canada, Räikkönen qualified fourth and finished fifth, Räikkönen's team-mate Massa was disqualified. At the United States Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified fourth, finished fourth and recorded fastest lap of the race. With ten races in the season left, Räikkönen was 26 points behind leader Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers' Championship.

In France, Räikkönen qualified third, but overtook Hamilton at the first corner of the race. He subsequently ran second, behind teammate Massa, for much of the Grand Prix, but overtook the Brazilian during the pit stops and took his second victory of the season. This was the 11th victory of his Formula One career and Ferrari's first 1–2 win of the 2007 season. At the British Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified in second place, just missing the pole by running wide in the last corner. In the race, he again took the lead through pit stops, first overtaking Lewis Hamilton midway through the race and then putting in fast laps as Fernando Alonso pitted for the second time in the closing stages to pass him. Räikkönen led to the end of the race.

At the European Grand Prix, Räikkönen captured his second pole position of the season but retired from the race, run in heavy rain, with a problem with the hydraulics of the car. In Hungary, Räikkönen qualified his car in fourth place, but started from third after Fernando Alonso was penalised. In the race he overtook Nick Heidfeld at the start and pressured Hamilton until the end, but had to settle for second, being 0.7s behind Hamilton. He set the fastest lap time on the last lap of the race, commenting after the race: "I was so bored behind Hamilton, I wanted to see how quick I could have been." In Turkey, Räikkönen missed pole position after making a mistake in the final sector of his fast lap, which left him third on the grid. On race day, he overtook Hamilton in the first corner and took second place, which he kept to the end of the race.

At Monza's third practice session, Räikkönen crashed into the tyre wall before entering the Ascari chicane. He qualified in fifth place, and raced in the Ferrari reserve car while suffering from a neck problem. The Ferrari team employed an unusual one-stop strategy, which left him third after Hamilton passed him late in the race on fresh tyres. At Spa-Francorchamps, Räikkönen's favourite circuit, he secured pole position again and took his fourth victory of the season. Massa finished second, Alonso third and Hamilton fourth. This was also Räikkönen's third consecutive Spa win, which placed him among six other drivers with three or more Spa wins.

At the Fuji Speedway in Japan, the only new track on the 2007 calendar, Räikkönen qualified in third position, while Hamilton took pole and Alonso second. In an extremely wet race, which saw the first 19 laps run behind the safety car, both Räikkönen and teammate Massa were badly affected by having to change to extreme wet tyres during the early stages, because the FIA's tyre-rule notification arrived late at Ferrari. Towards the end of the race, Räikkönen moved through the field to third place, but could not pass his fellow countryman Heikki Kovalainen for second.

At the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, Räikkönen dominated the whole weekend with fastest laps in the free-practice sessions. In qualifying, Hamilton took pole position with a lighter fuel load, while Räikkönen qualified second and Massa third. There was light rainfall at the beginning of the race which prompted the cars to start on intermediate tyres. After the first round of pit stops Hamilton lost grip as his tyres suffered graining, and Räikkönen overtook him. Hamilton retired after sliding into a gravel trap in the pit lane. Räikkönen took his fifth win of the season, that revived his title hopes before the last race of the season. This was also the 200th race win and 600th podium in a World Championship event for Ferrari as a manufacturer (as a team, their 200th win was achieved at the next race in Brazil, and their 600th podium was achieved in 2008 Bahrain Grand Prix). Räikkönen moved to seven and three points behind Hamilton and Alonso in the Drivers' Championship, respectively, going into the last race in Brazil, the first three-way title battle in the final race of the season since 1986.

Räikkönen took the 2007 Formula One Drivers' title with victory in the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos, in an incident-packed race. Massa had taken pole, followed by Hamilton, Räikkönen, and Alonso. At the start of the race Räikkönen passed Hamilton on the outside and lined up behind Massa. Alonso shortly afterwards passed Hamilton, who fell progressively down the order. Räikkönen eventually overtook Massa, who was already eliminated from contention for the Drivers' Championship in the Japanese Grand Prix. Massa's strategy for the second round of pit stops ensured Räikkönen kept the lead. Räikkönen went on to take the chequered flag, which handed him the crown by a single point from Hamilton and Alonso. Championship leader Hamilton eventually finished the race in seventh place, while defending champion Alonso managed third.

While Räikkönen had only one point more than Alonso and Hamilton at the end of the season, he had the most victories (six compared to four by each McLaren driver).

Räikkönen's Drivers' Championship was briefly put into doubt when race stewards began an investigation after identifying possible fuel irregularities in the cars of Nico Rosberg, Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld following post-race inspection. Their disqualification and a race reclassification would have seen Hamilton lifted from seventh to fourth in the race result. However the race stewards decided that no sanctions would be given, meaning the results would stand. McLaren appealed against the decision, however the FIA Court of Appeal rejected their appeal on 16 November 2007 thus confirming Räikkönen as the champion. As of the end of the 2021 Formula One season, Räikkönen's 2007 title triumph remains the most recent World Drivers' Championship win for a Scuderia Ferrari driver.

Räikkönen took his first win of 2008 at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

After a disappointing first race in Australia, where Räikkönen eventually finished eighth after qualifying only 15th due to a mechanical problem, he won his first race of the 2008 season at the Malaysian Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Robert Kubica and Heikki Kovalainen. His victory in Kuala Lumpur came on the fifth anniversary of his maiden victory at the same track. In Bahrain, Räikkönen qualified in fourth on the grid. He moved up to second place by the third lap and finished in that position, behind his team-mate Felipe Massa. He also secured the lead in the championship.

In Spain, Räikkönen took the 15th pole of his career and his first of the 2008 season. He managed to take his second race win of the season and the fastest lap of the race. Räikkönen overtook Mika Häkkinen in the list of total number of fastest laps and also in terms of podium finishes, making him the highest-ranked Finnish driver in these statistics.

In Singapore, the first night event in Formula One history, Räikkönen qualified third behind Massa and Hamilton. He remained in this position for most of the early laps. On lap 14, Nelson Piquet Jr.'s Renault hit the wall at turn 17 and the safety car was deployed. Both Ferrari drivers pitted during the safety car period, with Räikkönen queued behind Massa in a busy pitlane. Ferrari released Massa before the fuel hose was disconnected from the car, which compromised Räikkönen who rejoined in 16th. Räikkönen managed to climb to fifth place, but on lap 57, while attacking Timo Glock, he hit the wall after pushing too hard at turn 10 and retired. He set the fastest lap of the race as his tenth of the season. This equalled Michael Schumacher's 2004 record of ten fastest laps in a Formula One season.

At the Brazilian Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified third and finished third, behind Massa and Alonso. As Kubica failed to score, he finished third in the championship.

Räikkönen also won the DHL Fastest Lap Award for the second year in a row. He set 10 fastest laps throughout the season.

At the start of the 2009 season in the Australian Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified in ninth place. The pace of the Ferraris and McLarens in particular was significantly slower than the likes of the Brawn, Red Bull and other outfits who were struggling to keep up with them in 2008. In the race, both Ferraris were running well before Räikkönen hit a barrier. He was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop on lap 43 and subsequently retired with differential failure.

Räikkönen's season did not get any better in Round 3 in China where he qualified in eighth place. In the wet race, he and Lewis Hamilton had duels early on, with Hamilton having to overtake Räikkönen three times to get the job done. Räikkönen complained about power loss from the engine from near the start and of a lack of grip after his one and only pit-stop. This meant that he could only finish 10th. In Bahrain, Räikkönen secured sixth place and Ferrari's first points of the year, but was disappointed by the team's performance. He retired from the Spanish Grand Prix due to a hydraulics failure after qualifying from the back of the grid.

In Japan, Räikkönen came very close to another podium, finishing fourth. He had qualified fifth and was not able to gain a place at the start of the race, as he was on hard tyres. He put on softs for his second stint and was able to close in on Nick Heidfeld at about three-quarters of a second every lap. He overtook the German after the BMW Sauber came out of the pits. However, an accident involving Toro Rosso's Jaime Alguersuari brought out the safety car on lap 44, which kept the field stationary for a further five laps. Despite Hamilton suffering a KERS failure, Räikkönen's car did not have the grip necessary and was not able to overtake the third-placed McLaren at the restart. He went wide in an attempt to overtake Hamilton but recovered without losing a further place to Nico Rosberg.

Räikkönen at the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix

In Brazil, Räikkönen qualified fifth and finished sixth. His race was already ruined when Mark Webber swerved into his path, damaging the Ferrari's front wing. At the pit stop while having the wing changed, fuel dripping from the fuel rig stuck on Kovalainen's car caused the Ferrari to briefly burst in flames as the two cars were exiting their pit stops. For the rest of the race even with his eyes burning from fuel, Räikkönen used his strategy to move up the order and eventually finished in sixth place.

In Abu Dhabi, the last race of the season, Räikkönen qualified 11th. He lost a place at the start of the race to Kamui Kobayashi. Räikkönen finished 12th, out of the points.

2010-2011 leaving Formula One

Near the end of the 2009 season, Ferrari announced that Räikkönen would be leaving the team, despite having a contract to race for them in 2010. He would be replaced by Fernando Alonso. He was expected to return to McLaren alongside Lewis Hamilton but negotiations with the team failed. Räikkönen was then linked to Mercedes GP but the team eventually signed Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg. Toyota F1, before it pulled out of Formula One, offered Räikkönen a driving contract to replace Timo Glock in 2010. The BBC reported that he refused the contract owing to wanting to drive a race-winning car, not to mention Toyota not offering a large enough salary.

On 17 November 2009, his manager Steve Robertson confirmed that Räikkönen would not drive in Formula One in the 2010 season. But during 2010 itself, rumours emerged once again about another possible Räikkönen comeback this time with the Renault team in 2011. This followed a resurgence in Renault's form, and the fact that the Russian Vitaly Petrov had yet to be re-signed like team-mate Robert Kubica. Team principal Éric Boullier claimed he had been contacted by Räikkönen in connection with a possible return, but said that although he was flattered by Räikkönen's alleged display of interest:

"I would have to speak personally with him first, look him in the eyes to see if I see enough motivation there for him to return to F1. It doesn't make sense to hire somebody, even a former world champion, if you cannot be sure that his motivation is still 100%. Why should you invest in somebody who leaves you guessing?"

However Räikkönen angrily shot down the suggestion that he would race, claiming that Renault had simply used his name for "their own marketing purposes".

Returning to Formula One

2012-2013 Lotus

In the week before the 2011 Singapore Grand Prix, several news sources reported that Räikkönen was eyeing a return to Formula One for 2012 with Williams, after he was spotted at the team's headquarters in Grove, Oxfordshire. Several reports went so far as to suggest that Räikkönen had entered preliminary negotiations with the team. However, the team refused to comment on the reports, with driver Rubens Barrichello dismissing them as rumour and speculation. On 29 November 2011, it was announced that Räikkönen would be returning to Formula 1 in 2012, signing a two-year contract with Lotus.

Räikkönen began the season by qualifying 17th for the Australian Grand Prix after making a mistake on his last flying lap. However, he recovered his weekend during the race the next day, as he made a good start to move up to twelfth, before making it into the top ten. He took three places on the last lap of the race, to finish in seventh place. In the dry qualifying session for the Malaysian Grand Prix Räikkönen qualified in fifth place. He started the race from 10th place because of an unscheduled gearbox change. In the race he had the opportunity to try Pirelli's wet-weather tyres for the first time. He finished the race in fifth despite being inexperienced with Pirelli's wet-weather tyres compared to most of the other drivers. At the Chinese Grand Prix he was 14th after running second before being overtaken by 10 cars in the space of one lap, due to a mistake in tyre strategy, expecting the Pirelli tyres to last longer in the last stint. At the Bahrain Grand Prix he finished second starting from 11th position on the grid. It was his first podium and his best finish of this comeback. Three weeks later, Räikkönen finished third at the Spanish Grand Prix, after having qualified in fifth place, which had been promoted to fourth as a result of a penalty given to Lewis Hamilton. In the Monaco Grand Prix Räikkönen qualified in eighth but finished one place lower in ninth place. For the Canadian Grand Prix Räikkönen again had a bad qualifying session finishing 12th. He was able to finish eighth in the race taking, as he stated, "important championship points". In the European Grand Prix at the Valencia Street Circuit he finished second behind Fernando Alonso. In the British Grand Prix he finished fifth, after having qualified in sixth place. During qualifying for the German Grand Prix, Räikkönen had good pace in Q1 with the harder set of tyres and was looking good for a potential shot at a higher grid place. At the start of Q2 the rain was already heavy meaning that Räikkönen lost the advantage he had in dry conditions. In the wet Q3 session he qualified in 10th place. Good pace in dry conditions from the qualifying session was proven in the race as Räikkönen succeeded to finish fourth, and eventually gaining the last podium spot after Sebastian Vettel was penalised for an illegal overtaking manoeuvre. For the Hungarian Grand Prix Räikkönen qualified fifth. He lost fifth place at the start to Alonso due to a KERS issue on his E20 car. He succeeded in gaining a position over Alonso during the first round of pit-stops, and later did the same to Button and Vettel during the second round. He finished the race in second place, just one second behind the race winner Hamilton.

Räikkönen driving for Lotus at the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix

After a five-week long summer break, the much speculated introduction of a 'Drag Reduction Device' by the Lotus F1 team was delayed due to bad weather conditions on Friday for the Belgian Grand Prix. That did not stop Räikkönen from qualifying fourth. He went on to finish third behind Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel. A week later at Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Räikkönen qualified seventh and finished the race in fifth. At the Singapore Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified 12th as his Lotus E20 could not match the pace of the top 3 teams and eventually finished sixth. At the Japanese Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified eighth after spinning at his final attempt in Q3 and finished sixth after being passed by McLaren's Lewis Hamilton after the second round of pit stops. The Korean Grand Prix saw the introduction of a coanda style exhaust system and several other minor updates to the Lotus E20 which, Lotus team boss Éric Boullier regarded as a new era in his team's development race. Räikkönen eventually qualified fifth and finished the race in fifth after an impressive battle with Hamilton which ended in Räikkönen's favour. Even though he was 48 points behind the championship leader Sebastian Vettel after 16 rounds of the 2012 season, Räikkönen said he takes inspiration from the 2007 season which he won at the last round in Brazilian Grand Prix after Lewis Hamilton suffered gearbox problems. At the Indian Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified in seventh place. He could not manage to improve his starting position because of a lack of top speed on the straights. After this race, the contract with Lotus was extended for 2013 due to the fact that the terms of options in the contract have been met. On 4 November 2012, Räikkönen won his first race for the Lotus F1 team at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a good start from fourth saw him take Pastor Maldonado and Mark Webber at the first corner. He was unable to match the pace of Hamilton, but a mechanical issue retired the McLaren and allowed Räikkönen to win the race, despite pressure from the Ferrari of Alonso in the closing stages. Although he was now mathematically eliminated from the championship as a result of Vettel finishing third, the Lotus name celebrated its first win since the 1987 Detroit Grand Prix which was won by Ayrton Senna. Still third, Räikkönen was 16 points clear of Hamilton in the championship. But after Hamilton's pole position at the concluding race of 2012, Räikkönen would have to finish at least fifth in the race if Hamilton were to win. He qualified only ninth. On lap 52, Räikkönen, who had been in-and-out of the points frequently, made a mistake and went off the track and tried to use an escape road to re-enter the track rather than drive over the grass. The road was blocked and he was forced to turn back. He lost numerous places and found himself behind a Caterham and a Marussia. He skidded again to be lapped, but re-claimed the lost places and with a retirement from Hamilton, finished the race in 10th and claimed his third place in the standings, with a 1-point contribution to the tally. He ended the season 71 points behind Alonso and 74 points behind champion Sebastian Vettel.

On 29 October 2012, Lotus confirmed that Räikkönen would be racing with the team in 2013, after several weeks of speculation that Räikkönen had several other options for 2013, including other forms of motorsport.

On 17 March 2013 he won the first race of the season, the Australian Grand Prix despite starting from seventh, thanks to a two-stop strategy while most of the others did three stops. He also set the fastest lap of the race on lap 56. He described the victory as one of his easiest wins. Räikkönen qualified seventh in Malaysia, but was demoted three places for impeding Nico Rosberg during qualifying. He finished the race seventh, behind team-mate Grosjean, after damaging his car at the start.

At the Chinese Grand Prix, he qualified and finished second, despite having to regain the two places he lost at the start and having damaged the front of his car while battling Sergio Pérez for position. In the Bahrain Grand Prix he qualified ninth, but was promoted to eighth after Lewis Hamilton received a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change. He finished the race second ahead of his team-mate Romain Grosjean, with Sebastian Vettel winning the race. The podium of the race was exactly same as in 2012. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen started fourth and finished second thanks to a three-stop strategy. At the next race in Monaco, Räikkönen started fifth but an aggressive overtake by Pérez gave him a puncture and dropped him out of the points until a last-ditch attempt on the final lap where he overtook Esteban Gutiérrez, Valtteri Bottas and Nico Hülkenberg to gain tenth place. In the process, it continued his streak of 23 consecutive points finishes, one shy of the record of 24 set by Michael Schumacher across three seasons between 2001 and 2003.

Räikkönen at the 2013 Italian Grand Prix

He failed to score again at the Italian Grand Prix after losing his front wing at the start. He managed to make his way up the order, but was unable to pass Jenson Button for a point scoring position. On the week following the race, it was announced that Räikkönen would not continue with Lotus for the 2014 season, and instead join Fernando Alonso at Ferrari. Before the following Singapore Grand Prix, it was revealed that Räikkönen had not been paid salary by Lotus for the whole season, meaning there were several million euros of outstanding fees. Räikkönen publicly cited this as the reason for leaving Lotus for Ferrari.

Two weeks later, at the Indian Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified sixth. In the race, he opted for a one-stop tyre strategy, placing him in the second place at the closing stages of the Grand Prix. However, during the final few laps, his pace was more than a second slower than those chasing him, including Nico Rosberg and Räikkönen's Lotus teammate Romain Grosjean. With eight laps remaining, Rosberg was able to take over Räikkönen for second. Grosjean then caught up with Räikkönen on the fourth last lap, but was not immediately able to pass him. At this point, the Lotus trackside operations director Alan Permane had a heated radio exchange with Räikkönen, commanding him to move out of the way. The radio conversation was widely noted in the press, raising questions about the health of his relationship with the team. Räikkönen eventually finished seventh after stopping for new tyres with only two laps to go.

 Immediately after being recovered, he left the circuit and returned to his hotel while the race continued, further fuelling tensions between him and the team. Despite this, following the race, it was announced that Lotus and Räikkönen had reached a provisional agreement on the salary dispute that would see Räikkönen race for the team during the remainder of the season as the investment group Quantum Motorsports said that they had concluded long-running negotiations with Lotus for acquisition of a share in the team, providing the team with financial security.

However, a week before the following United States Grand Prix, it was announced that Räikkönen would nevertheless miss the rest of the season, having elected to have back surgery for the problems that had troubled him in the Singapore Grand Prix. For the remaining two Grands Prix, Räikkönen would be replaced at Lotus by fellow Finn Heikki Kovalainen.

2014-2018 Ferrari

On 11 September 2013, it was confirmed that Räikkönen had agreed a 2-year deal to return to Ferrari (where he won the championship in 2007), starting from 2014. He revealed that it was for monetary reasons that he left Lotus.

A rule change for the 2014 season allowed drivers to pick a unique car number that they will use for their entire F1 career. Räikkönen however decided to retain the No. 7 car number he used for Lotus during the 2013 season as "It's the number I already had last year and I saw no reason to change it".

After getting a great start, Räikkönen was on for a podium finish at the Monaco Grand Prix. However, Max Chilton punctured Räikkönen's left-rear tyre while unlapping himself during a safety car period, forcing Räikkönen to make a second pitstop. Räikkönen then set the fastest lap of the race on lap 75, but finished 12th.

After a mostly disappointing first half of the season, Räikkönen had a return to form at the first race back after the summer break in Belgium, where a good strategy and a series of fastest laps earned him fourth place, his best result of the season. It was also the first time Räikkönen had finished higher in a race than Alonso in 2014. Räikkönen ended the 2014 season a career-low 12th in the Drivers' Championship, and for the first time since his rookie year, did not finish on the podium. Throughout the season, Räikkönen struggled with the car's lack of turn-in on corner entry and the feeling of the new brake-by-wire systems, saying that "We try somehow to balance it out and try to have a front end on the car, but it is very, very difficult. I hate it when there is no front end on the car."

Räikkönen remained with Ferrari for the 2015 season, partnering former world champion Sebastian Vettel after Alonso announced his departure from the Scuderia.

Räikkönen at the 2015 Malaysian Grand Prix

Räikkönen had to retire from the first race of the season in Australia due to a loose wheel following a pitstop. Following that mishap, he recovered to finish fourth both in Malaysia and China. Another pit issue befell Räikkönen during practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix as he was reprimanded for exiting the pitlane in a 'potentially dangerous manner' by the stewards, having swerved around a standing car in an undesignated area. However, he escaped a possible grid penalty. During the same weekend, his manager Steve Robertson suggested that Räikkönen was heading towards a contract extension with Ferrari. That would contradict previous suggestions from Räikkönen himself that he would 'probably' retire at the end of his Ferrari contract, and that 2015 would be his last season. Courtesy of a considerate tyre strategy by the Ferrari team, at the Bahrain Grand Prix, Räikkönen finished second after gaining that position late in the race and starting from fourth on the grid. In the process, Räikkönen recorded his first podium since the 2013 Korean Grand Prix for Lotus, and the first in his second spell with Ferrari – his most recent Ferrari podium was a third-place finish at the 2009 Italian Grand Prix. Räikkönen said that he was hopeful in winning races in the near future after the team's strong recovery relative to 2014. 

At the Singapore Grand Prix, Räikkönen showed consistent performances in the practice sessions and qualified in third, behind Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo. Räikkönen maintained the position through the race despite being uncomfortable with the car, to take his second podium finish of the season. Räikkönen ended the season by finishing third in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to take his third podium of the year and securing fourth place in the Drivers' Championship.

For the second year in a row, Räikkönen had to retire from the first race of the season in Australia, after a fire broke out in his airbox. Räikkönen finished in the second place at the Bahrain Grand Prix while his teammate Sebastian Vettel did not start the race after his car broke down on formation lap. Räikkönen outpaced teammate Sebastian Vettel in qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix to take third on the grid, however a first lap collision with Vettel saw him damaging his front wing and he dropped down the order, he then showed good pace to move up the field and eventually finished fifth. He managed to finish the Russian Grand Prix in third place after a huge start collision, which left his teammate Vettel out of the race. This was also the 700th podium in Ferrari's Formula One history. Räikkönen finished behind Max Verstappen in second place to take his third podium of the season in the Spanish Grand Prix finishing ahead of his teammate Vettel who was third.

Räikkönen showed greatly improved qualifying performances during the 2016 season, out-qualifying teammate Vettel 11–10.

Räikkönen started the 2017 season with fourth in Australia, fifth in China and then again fourth in Bahrain. Räikkönen scored his first podium of the season at the following Russian Grand Prix, finishing third. He retired from the Spanish Grand Prix after being involved in an incident on the first lap.

Räikkönen scored his first pole position in 129 races at the Monaco Grand Prix, qualifying 0.04 seconds faster than teammate Sebastian Vettel to become the sport's oldest polesitter since 1997. He finished the race second after Vettel had a superior strategy, giving Ferrari their first 1–2 finish since 2010. Räikkönen finished seventh in Canada after struggling with brake problems. He qualified third at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but retired from the race with an oil leak. He then finished fifth in Austria.

In Malaysia he qualified second but did not start the race because of a technical problem. After a fifth place at the Japanese Grand Prix, Räikkönen finished third at the United States Grand Prix. He repeated this performance in the Mexican Grand Prix and Brazilian Grand Prix, scoring three consecutive podiums. A fourth-place finish in Abu Dhabi secured fourth position in the drivers' championship for Räikkönen.

Kimi Räikkönen celebrating his win at the 2018 US Grand Prix

Räikkönen renewed his contract with Ferrari for the 2018 season on 22 August 2017. He qualified second for the first race in Australia and finished third, after being jumped by Vettel during the virtual safety car period. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, he qualified second after encountering traffic on his last run. He then ran in third for most of the race, but retired on lap 35 due to a pit stop error by Ferrari. He went on to finish third at the Chinese Grand Prix after recovering from a strategy aimed at helping his teammate.

At the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Räikkönen recovered from a first lap incident with Esteban Ocon to eventually finish second. Räikkönen's engine failed during practice at the Spanish Grand Prix, forcing him to change engines. This meant that he missed Ferrari's upgraded engine introduced two races later in Canada and had to race with the old specification engine until the 13th round in Belgium to avoid a penalty. His engine failed again in the race in Spain, forcing him to retire from the race, but the engine did not have to be replaced. This was followed by a fourth-place finish in Monaco and sixth in Canada.

A third-place finish in the French Grand Prix started a run of consecutive podiums for Räikkönen. He would finish second at the following Austrian Grand Prix, then at the British Grand Prix he recovered from a controversial 10-second penalty to finish third, after which he finished third again at the German and Hungarian Grands Prix to score five consecutive podiums. At the Belgian Grand Prix, Räikkönen had strong pace during qualifying, but a fuel miscalculation by Ferrari meant that he could not complete a lap in the drying conditions later in session which left him sixth on the grid. He retired from the race as his car was damaged in a first lap crash initiated by Nico Hülkenberg.

Räikkönen took pole position at the Italian Grand Prix, breaking Juan Pablo Montoya's 14-year-old record to set the fastest lap ever recorded in Formula One history with an average speed of 263.588 kilometres per hour (163.786 mph). His race was compromised by Mercedes ordering Bottas to block him after his pit stop, but he nevertheless finished second to score his 100th podium finish, becoming only the fifth driver ever to do so. This was followed by a fifth-place finish in Singapore, fourth in Russia and fifth in Japan, where his car sustained damage from a hit by Verstappen.

Räikkönen won the United States Grand Prix, becoming, at 39, F1's oldest race winner since Nigel Mansell in 1994, and the 13th oldest F1 race winner ever. It was his first win since the 2013 Australian Grand Prix 2,044 days earlier, his first win for Ferrari since he returned to the team back in 2014, his first win for Ferrari since the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix 3,339 days and 140 races earlier, and his first win in the hybrid era. This victory made Räikkönen the most successful Finnish driver of all time in terms of race wins. He broke the record for the longest gap between Grand Prix wins (113 races) and the record for the biggest gap between first and last career wins (5,691 days). Coincidentally, this victory came on the 11th anniversary of his 2007 F1 world championship. He followed this victory with third-placed podiums at the Mexican and Brazilian Grands Prix. He retired in Abu Dhabi with an electrical issue, but nonetheless, despite four retirements that were not caused by him, he finished third in the Drivers' Championship in his final season with Ferrari.

2019-2021 Alfa Romeo

On 11 September 2018, it was announced that Räikkönen would leave Ferrari at the end of the season to rejoin Sauber on a two-year contract, the team he made his Formula One debut with in 2001. Räikkönen made his Sauber return in the postseason Abu Dhabi Pirelli tyre test driving their 2018 car. The Sauber team was renamed Alfa Romeo Racing prior to the start of the 2019 season.

Räikkönen had an impressive first half of the season, scoring 31 points before the summer break, placing him eighth in the Drivers' Championship after 12 races. In comparison, his teammate Antonio Giovinazzi had scored only a single point during the same period. However, after the summer break, the Alfa Romeo Racing C38 struggled for pace and Räikkönen endured a seven-race pointless streak. He had an opportunity to score points in Belgium, starting from sixth on the grid, but he was hit by Max Verstappen at the first corner. The pointless streak ended at the Brazilian Grand Prix, where a strong race and a penalty for Lewis Hamilton yielded a fourth-place finish, the first top-four finish for the Hinwil-based team since 2013. Räikkönen finished 12th in the Drivers' Championship with 43 points, which, again, was the best result for a driver of the Hinwil-based team since 2013.

Räikkönen remained at the Alfa Romeo Racing team for the 2020 season. The team's Ferrari-powered car proved to be one of the slowest cars of the season, and the team was left fighting at the back of the grid against Haas and Williams. During the season Räikkönen scored points twice, finishing ninth at the Tuscan Grand Prix and again ninth at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, while he scored the team's best qualifying result with eighth in Turkey. This placed him 16th in the drivers' standings with four points, ahead of teammate Antonio Giovinazzi and the Haas and Williams drivers. Räikkönen was the highest finishing driver among this group in nine of the season's 17 races, while he finished ahead of his teammate in nine of the 13 races which both finished and qualified ahead of him eight times. He was also the highest finishing Ferrari-powered driver on four occasions.

Räikkönen's 323rd Formula One race start at the Eifel Grand Prix saw him break Rubens Barrichello's record for most Formula One race starts in history. He won the FIA Action of the Year award for his opening lap at the Portuguese Grand Prix, where he overtook 10 cars.

Räikkönen at the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix

Räikkönen continued with Alfa Romeo in 2021 alongside Giovinazzi. Before the season started Räikkönen had decided to retire at the end of the season. He tested positive for COVID-19 on the weekend of the Dutch Grand Prix and was replaced by reserve driver Robert Kubica at the Dutch and Italian Grand Prix. Räikkönen scored his first points of the season in Azerbaijan, with more points in Hungary, Russia and Mexico. In November he visited the Alfa Romeo factory in Switzerland for the last time as a team member and was given a farewell, and was subsequently given a farewell by the Scuderia Ferrari team prior to the race in Abu Dhabi. For his final race in Abu Dhabi the team inscribed "Dear Kimi, we will leave you alone now" on his C41. Räikkönen was forced to retire on lap 25 because of a technical issue with a wheel nut. "It doesn't matter how it comes to the end, it's the end now and yes, I'm looking forward to it," he said after the race. Räikkönen finished the season in 16th place with 10 points.

Personal life

Räikkönen met Finnish model and former Miss Scandinavia 2001, Jenni Dahlman in 2002. The couple married on 31 July 2004, living between Switzerland and Finland. They separated in February 2013, and divorced in 2014. Räikkönen became engaged to fitness and underwear model Minna-Mari "Minttu" Virtanen. On 28 January 2015, Virtanen gave birth to the couple's first child, a son. On 7 August 2016, Räikkönen married Virtanen in a ceremony in Siena, Italy. On 16 May 2017, Räikkönen became a father for the second time with the birth of his daughter.