F1 Half Term Report: Rate the Grid - Kimi Räikkönen

[Paul Jeffrey]

Former World Champion and one of the oldest drivers on the grid, Finland's Kimi Räikkönen is the next subject of our 'Rate the Grid' feature.

At 37 years of age, Räikkönen is very much toward the rear end of an impressive career spanning 15 seasons, 20 wins, 88 podiums and a World Drivers Championship in Formula One. Having failed to deliver on his immense talent so far in his Ferrari return, 2017 has seen an upturn in fortune for the Finnish star, with a much improved qualifying performance against team mate Vettel and only bad luck having prevented the driver adding another race victory or two to his racing CV.

Currently sitting in fifth position in the drivers standings, Räikkönen may well have done enough in 2017 to earn himself and extended stay in the top flight of professional motorsport.

Vote now to tell us how you rate the first half of 2017 for Kimi Räikkönen, and leave a comment below!

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[Deleted member 205301]

Kimi is Kimi : he does the job, no more, not less
Considering He should have won 2 races this year without a "team strategy" ... He deserves a 8 from me, convinced that he's underated since 2years...
@++

 

[Jimlaad43]

Rated bwoah

 

[rubaru]

7. Only because he's clearly been beaten by Vettel even when there are no issues with the car. He's down 8-3 on qualifying and none of those have presented technical issues or strategy calls. I still think he's a great driver, but in the same machinery, his teammate is better this season. I wonder, too, since Vettel has taken such an advantage, if Kimi will ever have the chance to really shine again. Strategy calls will certainly go in Vettel's favor due to his position in the WDC. If Kimi is gunning for a win and Vettel is down the grid somewhere, then we might see Ferrari swap their calls, but that's not likely unless Vettel has a problem in a race.

 

[Alep9841]

Kimi is meh, he could've won in Hungary if it wasn't for the dirty air effect and team orders. In monaco he was unlucky, nobody was expecting such a great performance by Vettel in those 5-6 laps between the stops of the two cars. Considering that he's yet to win a race, he gets a solid 7 from me.

 

[Sky]

over the years he's gone from exciting talent to something like ralf schumacher

 

[Leonardo Chaves]

He's past his better days (for a while now), no longer a legit threat to win the championship even in a competitive car.

Can be a good number 2 when he gets things working (which is not a certainty).

 

[Coffer]

8. He's clearly the #2 in the team at this point and his luck has been far from the best. Considering the circumstances, he's done a good enough job. Vettel is head and shoulders above everyone else this year, so expecting Kimi to match him on a regular basis would be ridiculous.

I don't like how much he complained about not being allowed to go past Vettel in Hungary when that one car issue happened. It's clear that he's not as much of a genuine #2 as Massa, and for that reason I finally wonder what the team would be like if they hired a different driver like Grosjean or Leclerc.

 

[Lorenzo Bonder]

Bwoah.

 

[Benutzername]

I always read these threads as 'Grill the grid'

Anyway.

I am disappointed by his raw performance. He was really good when he returned with Lotus but the last seasons he barely was able to shine.

Has its moments though.

 

[M-Bimmer]

Come on guys It's ice man....the last Ferrari world champion

"Just leave me alone i know what i am driving"

Not bad his fastest laps record so far.

Anyways, when he feels comfortable with his car, he does a great job but he admitted that he will do what the team asks him to do but it felt that he wanted to win at Hungary to show his fans and everyone that he is still capable of winning.

(If only his car McLaren Mercedes was reliable back in the days...he would have bagged a championship or two)

 

[gamer19]

Oh don't give me that "if only he didn't have to let Vettel pass..." nonsense, if he had better start of the season and better year than Vettel (something he doesn't do - for how many years now?) then Vettel should let him pass.
Hard to imagine but yes... wouldn't himself have to obey team orders ?
Did Kimi loses his fighting spirit ? In my opinion yes.
Once you do that you better retire and let some new hot blood in. That - it if Ferrari doesn't actually love this situation, only one real title candidate and other who gets as much points as he can. Who would want another Hamilton/Rosberg fiasco after all ?

 

[James Cook]

Just picking up the paycheck.

 

[93Florent]

He's one of the greatest natural talent I've ever seen.
Despite that, I think that his talent is completely wasted.

Gets a 6. Weak start of the season, now picking up the pace.
Still not even close to what he used to be before winning the WDC.

 

[pcraenme]

Still amongst the best drivers on the grid, but I am afraid this will be his last year in F1. F1 needs characters like Kimi and he will be missed. I think the modern F1 car suits his driving style less. Just start using the old V8's or even better V10's without all this hybrid nonsense (we have Formula E now for this) and stop using DRS (overtaking should be a skill), and he would be back on top!

 

[Ryder7538]

Still amongst the best drivers on the grid, but I am afraid this will be his last year in F1. F1 needs characters like Kimi and he will be missed. I think the modern F1 car suits his driving style less. Just start using the old V8's or even better V10's without all this hybrid nonsense (we have Formula E now for this) and stop using DRS (overtaking should be a skill), and he would be back on top!

Same was said about this years regs that he would be back on Top

But no, stop looking for excuses.
Kimi is fast and almost all of us love him but his days of being a championship threat are long past.
He lost his fighting spirit after losing out to Massa in 2008
and regained it for 2012 but even before the end of 2013 he lost it again.

BTW changing the engine concept would barely change the handling characteristics of the car.
And I think races like China have proven that he wouldn't be the kind of driver who would benefit from DRS being removed.

 

[Rob]

Come on guys It's ice man....the last Ferrari world champion

"Just leave me alone i know what i am driving"

Not bad his fastest laps record so far.

View attachment 207149

Anyways, when he feels comfortable with his car, he does a great job but he admitted that he will do what the team asks him to do but it felt that he wanted to win at Hungary to show his fans and everyone that he is still capable of winning.

(If only his car McLaren Mercedes was reliable back in the days...he would have bagged a championship or two)

View attachment 207150

Well dang. Kimi fans are so smart! lol. I learned something new. 17% aint bad for being stuck in a mid tier Lotus and a Ferrari that can't pass Vettel. Don't forget, 18 points were gone compliments of Pirelli.

But holy HELL! 45% for Montoya. F1 is full of dumbasses if they can't figure out he should be there.

10. Had to balance out the haters, who apparently believe drivers in F1 can be judged on where they finish.

P.S. - I'm wondering what at "Poang" is. But whatever it is, it sounds dirty!
Errr...it's a chair?

 

[darkelf1]

i begin to know him when i play F1 99-02, good to see he still in F1 in 2017.........

 

[Maurits Vernel]

Great driver, but too complacent. He almost seems lazy.

 

[pcraenme]

BTW changing the engine concept would barely change the handling characteristics of the car.

I would not be so sure about that. Especially under breaking it is quite different because of the energy recovery and the impact that has on car behaviour slowing down. Accelerating with these turbo powered engines is also quite different. I also hear regularly that drivers are loading up their batteries during a lap so they can attack the lap after. With the old non-hybrid engines, you could attack at any time. And saving fuel... not really needed with the old V8/10 because they could refuel during the race. Quite a few differences that makes driving modern F1 cars different.