http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/24016050
They paid him to leave; now they pay him to come back!
Printable View
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/24016050
They paid him to leave; now they pay him to come back!
Bizarre on many levels but all somewhat typically F1 (Mansell back to Williams... Mansell in a McLaren et al)
I have a feeling we are not done with the "out there" announcements for 2014 yet.
People have been saying it will never happen, and to be honest I don't know that Ferrari is the place for Kimi... But he has been hinting a lot on his Facebook page. I think the last mentioned about Ferrari is that they will make an official announcement of the driver on Wednesday this week.
Personally I think being teammates to Alonso for someone of Raikkonens stature is a mistake. He's better off being lead driver at Lotus. But I guess he has his reasons.
To be honest, I will be surprised if Kimi is able to live with Alonso next year. Extremely surprised. I got word about this from a friend of mine about two days ago and wanted to post it but the forum has been down.
What has been going on there by the way?
Anyway, I think Raikkonen, unless he finds that speed he had at Mclaren, will be put to the wall by Alonso. Massa already beat him and Massa is nowhere near Raikkonen. Anyway, guess we'll see in time. I hope i'm wrong because I like Raikkonen I just don't rate him as highly as I do Alonso when it comes to getting the most out of the car.
Italian newspapers have today confirmed this news too. Personally it's a great news for me :D
I´m very nervous at the moment, nothing is confirmed yet.
And pino, I´m as glad as you, when LDM says it.
Kimi and Zo at Ferrari, what's the down side? :smokin: :uhoh: :bomb:Quote:
Originally Posted by pino
so it wasn't just the Spanish and German rags... :dork:
cool :D
(icey cool :p )
Disaster waiting to happen.
I'll go as far to say that if it is Fred and Kimi at Ferrari in 2014, it certainly won't be the case in 2015.
woah Big news.
Cant see that working to be honest.
If Kimi signs on with Ferrari, it seems that will confirm his belief that Lotus don't have the resources to develop a winning car for him in 2014.
I saw on ESPN that Kimi sign and that Massa will depart. I only mention this because ESPN's coverage of F1 is shite; so if they are reporting this it must be true.
I posted here last night and I guess Mark tinkered with the forum at the same moment...anyways its nice to see Kimi back in a (hopefully) quick car again and 2 drivers I like in the same team. Will be good to fire up Fernando if there is some negativity after 4 Vettel years in his mind.
Welcome back mate :dork:
Confirmed then.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/24042352
Wow this is going to be fun.
At the very least, it should fill some column inches :stareup: :dork: :sailor:
Goodbye Felipe! ;( Everyone knows you were faster than Fred :angel:
Kimi to Ferrari
Massa to Lotus
Hulk or diresta to Lotus
Sirotkin to Sauber
Grosjean to torro rosso or force india?
I really like Massa on a personal level - he's dignified, intelligent and seems to love F1. And after the accident it was great to see him back but - and there's always a 'but' - if Ferrari want to be serious about even coming close to challenging for a constructors crown, they need someone more consistent. That's not to say I think Kimi is the answer as the potential fireworks could be quite something, hence you'd assume the 1 year contract with the 1 year follow-on option.
Last year was a bad one for Felipe, he looked really out of sorts. There have been flashes of old Felipe this year but not enough to make me think his career isn't on a downward trajectory, as sad as that is.
I hope he's still around next year as I think the grid needs someone of his class - both as a person and a driver.
yup confirmed
http://eurosport.yahoo.com/news/formula ... 5--f1.html
that means hulkenberg joins Grosjean at Lotus
and Massa is out of F1 imo
my predictions are holding form
It will be an interesting next year, that's for sure.
No one really comes out a winner here looking at next year, Kimi goes back to a team that sacked him, Zemolo has to hire a guy he fired once, Massa get's the boot and Alonso has to work with a former Ferrari WDC. :)
Very interesting indeed, Kimi returning to Ferrari is defiantly not something I ever expected.
But like many I wonder if we will end up with another Senna/Prost or Alonso/Hamilton situation.
If Ferrari produces a good car next season this is going to be a very tough team to beat, however if ego's get the better of one another it could be a recipe for disaster.
Hopefully Raikkonen can stay motivated and pressure old fred :P
http://www3.pictures.gi.zimbio.com/F...zzYsf9j5Gl.jpg
:dork:
Let's see Kimi gets a big contract with a team that will actually pay him. Zemi and the Ferrari fans get two of the top four pilots in F1, and I don’t see the issue with Zo working with a former WDC, he'll know he has a fight on his hands from the get go. Only loser will be Massa, and I think he will get exactly what he deserves. Yes I'm quite sure life is going to suck for all involved parties :laugh: http://i46.tinypic.com/hv9ul3.gifQuote:
Originally Posted by janneppi
Edit: I almost forgot, biggest loser:
http://www.anchorfan.com/image/lotus-re ... 60821.htmlQuote:
One team Lotus have this afternoon responded to news that their Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen is to return to Ferrari next season with an extraordinary tweet showing two rabbits having sex, likening their driver's exit to being on the painful end of some love making. The tweet, shared to the teams 289,000 plus followers and beyond was shared as Ferrari confirmed Raikkonen's return a day after Felipe Massa announced his exit from the Ferrari seat in somewhat less controversial posts to his Instagram account. Shared with the image above, Lotus wrote: "So #Kimi is off to #Ferrari for 2014; it hurts a little bit… #F1 #Raikkonen pic.twitter.com/HkFhWvqpTo".
http://cdnbakmi.kaltura.com/p/284332...e/1/quality/80
Those freakin' guys at Lotus are either sore losers, or contrary to what the artical says
they are implying that they were the ones who got screwed not Kimi :confused: :grenade: :angel:
As far as Massa goes I guess his only real option for a semi competitive drive next season would be Lotus.
Either that or return to Sauber or even Force India.
But It wouldnt suprise me personally to see him in something like Indycar or maybe even Nascar next season, we shall see,
Wow, at last it´s official. I´m so glad and even if it is a tall order tó beat fred I know kimi will do it.
And, I´m sure this was LDM:s revenge on fred.
:stareup: :uhoh: :grenade: ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Mia 01
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/i...IK_1f7bWvaNhTQ
Hmmmm... so, LdM has come to his senses and signed back the only man that has won the WDC since Schu's "retirement". As Will Smith said in "I, Robot", ' you know, somehow, "I told you so" just doesn't quite say it'.
Sorry, Luca, but 'il Comendatore', you are not.
Asta Loego, Massa, for finding out the same lesson that your compatriot, Rubens, learned so bitterly; that 2nd banana on a top team won't automatically mean a #1 in the same place.
The difference between Kimi and the others that Alonso has paired with in the past is that differences will be settled on track, not in the press.
Alot of fun for the fans, if Smedley should ever become Raikkonen's race engineer... :laugh:
I really hope Ferrari produce a good car next season. Imagine if we got a level playing field in terms of cars.
Vettel & Red Bull v Hamilton & Rosberg v Kimi & Alonso.
That makes your mouth water.
I personally think Alonso will be upset with this. Does anyone think he might leave as he wont want a rival (like the McLaren days)?
I for one am sad, with every team having a #1 & #2 drivers, can't see Ferrari being any different.
How many tenths does Alonso bring, again?
As long as Alonso qualifies better than Kimi, and has decent starts, I don't think Kimi will trouble him.
leave and go where?Quote:
Originally Posted by steveaki13
Retire :D
No you're right. There is really nowhere left to go.
The only real option would be Lotus (old Renault). However they as we know have little or no money
Well this is very surprising news! Gonna be an interesting season at Ferrari in 2014!
You're underestimating Kimi here, I mean all the past evidence suggests that Kimi is one of the best drivers out there, so he'll certainly trouble Alonso, more than any other teammate in the past bar Lewis.Quote:
Originally Posted by Koz
I don't mind an honest intra-team fight between FA and KR but I do mind the advantage Vettel will have from this. He already has a car over the rest of the field and a team mate that doesn't bother him. I'm skeptic for the next season and I've already lost interest in this one.
Baring some good performances and a have decent car, Lotus have been very amateurish this year as far as corporate speak goes.Quote:
Originally Posted by janneppi
A fair assessment Dex, discount Kimi at your own peril, plus I just don't believe that Ice would accept a # 2 status. SD has already gone on record as saying that Kimi and Zo will start next season on equal terms. All the talk about this upsetting a team that is already unsettled is really nonsense. SD isn't going anywhere. Zemo isn't pissed off at Fred, and the addition of Allison now seems to be linked to signing Kimi.Quote:
Originally Posted by DexDexter
Here are the words of SD:
The opinion of SpongeBob (someone who had Ice as a teammate) may well be more relevant than that of the naysayers:Quote:
Everyone has their own ways and you can't expect a Finn to start telling jokes in Italian or playing the clown," he said. "Honestly, I think the combination of Fernando's expressive and passionate Latin character and the cool style, to call it that, of someone like Kimi, seems to appeal to many.
As for the technical side of things, not only do we know full well how much Kimi can contribute at an important time like this...but we also have first hand information from James Allison, as to how much the Finn has also progressed in this area over the past two years.
May the forza be with both of them :r2d2: :dork:Quote:
In my opinion, Fernando is the complete driver and will raise his game with Kimi there for the next two seasons, which is a worry for everyone else.
Massa didn't exactly accept #2 status. It was the beginning of the end. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Mr Alca-Tazizzle
I guess we'll just have to wait and see! :stareup: :erm: ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by kfzmeister
Kimi in the team is a sign to a certain driver as a couple of pundits (and me) belive. The one man show is now over, it´s not his team anymoore. Accept it or move on is the deal.
We will see, interesting times ahead.