Raikkonen Re-Signs Till '10

Kimi Raikkonen has signed a one year extension, keeping him in the famous red car until 2010.

I find myself very surprised at this. I know a lot of people were hankering on about comments made when he first signed, that it would be his last contract. I never put much stock in it because at the time, he was replacing Michael Schumacher, the sport’s greatest. How do you match that? You can’t! So it was easy for Raikkonen to choose such a comment to distinguish him from Schumacher.

I’ve made those comments on numerous occasions, usually when the Alonso-Ferrari link was swirling around. My opinion began to change as the season wore on and Kimi went from the raw racer we know him to be, to become seemingly an also ran.

Belgium aside, we haven’t seen Kimi on top of his game since France, even if a race win was scuppered by a broken exhaust. Since then, he has been anything but Kimi Raikkonen. My view began to lean given that he looked like someone driving towards retirement. This new contract changes everything.

Kimi’s problem isn’t motivation. It can’t be now, not when he has agreed to go on another year. If that was the issue, I’m sure the recent results would even nudge him towards hanging up at the end of this year. However, a greater question is now posed – What is up with Kimi?

You don’t suddenly become a bad driver overnight. Since first hitting the track, Kimi has proven himself to being one of the fastest men in the sport. The talent is there, so why isn’t it coming to the fore?

A possible reason been bandied around is that he just can’t do anything locked in traffic. All drivers, whether at the front or the year, face this problem. If this is such a major problem, then why don’t they go extremely radical on their strategy, especially with Kimi’s qualifying issues?

The car can’t be an issue, given that he has won and dominated in it earlier in the year. It reminds me of last year, where after winning the season opener; he ended up going on hiatus until around France, coming alive to drive to the championship. This year, it is going the opposite.

Is this a good move for Ferrari? I’m on the fence. It closes the door on Alonso, who I would like to see have a crack in the Ferrari. Both Raikkonen and Massa are now tied to the Prancing Horse until 2010. Recent rumours have Alonso heading towards BMW. With this new deal for Raikkonen, expect Alonso to be signed on as Kubica’s team-mate until at least 2010 in the coming weeks.