Kimi Wins Spanish Grand Prix

Kimi punches the air after wining the Spanish Grand Prix

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen became the eighth consecutive man to win the Spanish Grand Prix from pole position, when he dominated Sunday's race at the Circuit de Catalunya.

The Finn shrugged off two safety car periods - the second when compatriot Heikki Kovalainen crashed his McLaren heavily after a front-end failure pitched him off the road in Turn Nine at an estimated 180 mph - and led home team mate Felipe Massa, McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica. They finished 3.2s, 0.9s, and 1.5s apart respectively.

It may not have been a classic race, but it increased Raikkonen's championship score to 29 points and his lead to nine over Hamilton (20), while Massa jumps up to fourth on 18, one behind Kubica (19).

The Kovalainen incident occurred on the 22nd lap, possibly as a result of something causing the front-left tyre and rim to separate. It took a while to stabilise the Finn at the accident scene, but he gave a thumbs up as he was taken by stretcher to the medical centre. Later he was flown to hospital for precautionary checks, and his condition was described as stable.

Full story: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/4/7697.html

Kimi - Ferrari will be back!

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen believes the F2008 engine troubles will not be an issue on the upcoming races, despite the poor result on the Australian GP.

“I know that back in Maranello the team is working hard to solve our problems,” he told Ferrari’s official website. “I'm not worried at all about the performance and the competitiveness of the car. The first race was like it was, but we know that we have a really good car. I know that the team will never lose its focus. They've shown that already in the past - Ferrari will be back!”

The World Champion did score one point result form the disqualification of Ruben Barrichello.

“There's really not much to say about the first race weekend of the season,” the Finn added. “The only positive thing is that it's all behind us. Obviously we are really disappointed. We have to give our best and need to try to get the most points in every single race.”

Hamilton outpace three world champions

Despite a damp start to the day’s running, Hamilton covered 78 laps in the MP4-23

Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya, and clocking 1m 22.276s beat all three world champions, Kimi Raikkonen, Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso.

Michael Schumacher manage to clock third fastest time 1:22.428, 1 tenth behind Kimi Raikonen second place.

Williams continued to impress, with Kazuki Nakajima taking fourth slot and Nico Rosberg finishing in sixth. The duo covered over 150 laps as they continued to carry out set-up work and engine system checks.

Nick Heidfeld led the BMW Sauber line-up in eighth, with team tester Christian Klien 14th. It was the first time Klien had driven the squad’s F1.08 in dry conditions and he covered 42 laps as he carried out system checks and basic set-up work. Heidfeld, who completed 75 laps, will be joined by team mate Robert Kubica on Tuesday.

Renault’s Fernando Alonso just missed out on making it under the 1m 23s mark and ended the session seventh. Team mate Nelson Piquet Jr, meanwhile, took up 15th spot. The French team ran through a race simulation in the morning before switching to pit-stop practice in the afternoon.

Unofficial Monday times from Barcelona:
1. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, 1:22.276
2. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:22.319
3. Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 1:22.428
4. Kazuki Nakajima, Williams, 1:22.724
5. Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren, 1:22.852
6. Nico Rosberg, Williams, 1:22.974
7. Fernando Alonso, Renault, 1:23.021
8. Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber, 1:23.075
9. Adrian Sutil, Force India, 1:23.091
10. Mark Webber, Red Bull, 1:23.115
11. Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso, 1:23.188
12. Vitantonio Liuzzi, Force India, 1:23.239
13. Timo Glock, Toyota, 1:23.270
14. Christian Klien, BMW Sauber, 1:23.442
15. Nelson Piquet Jr, Renault, 1:23.609
16. Kamui Kobayashi, Toyota, 1:23.880
17. Rubens Barrichello, Honda, 1:24.660
18. Alexander Wurz, Honda, 1:24.667
19. David Coulthard, Red Bull, 1:24.826

Detailed report: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/2/7390.html

Kimi's first run on the F2008

Kimi Raikkonen negiotiating a corner in F2008

Less than 24 hours after Ferrari F2008 official launch, Kimi Raikkonen took to the track in Ferrari’s new car on Monday. Raikkonen completed the F2008’s first shakedown laps at the team’s Fiorano circuit in Italy.The F2008 is the machine with which Raikkonen will aim to defend his drivers’ crown when the new season gets underway in Australia in March.

Speaking at the launch of Ferrari’s new challenger, the F2008, Raikkonen was upbeat about his '08 prospects, as he and team mate Felipe Massa race to protect the Italian team’s title double.

“We will definitely try to win the drivers' and constructors' championship again,” said the Finn. “It's my second year at Ferrari. I know the people I am working with and I really like the team. We want to start really well into a great season. We want to win the world titles again and we want to avoid retirements.”

More details:

http://bcosurich.wordpress.com/2008/01/06/ferrari-launch-f2008/

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/1/7226.html

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/1/7228.html