Kimi-Matias Räikkönen (; born 17 October 1979), nicknamed "the Iceman", is a Finnish racing driver who competed in
Formula One
Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
between 2001 and 2021 for
Sauber
Sauber Motorsport AG, currently competing in Formula One as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, and also known simply as Kick Sauber or Sauber, is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who pro ...
,
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
,
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
,
Lotus, and
Alfa Romeo
Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian carmaker known for its sports-oriented vehicles, strong auto racing heritage, and iconic design. Headquartered in Turin, Italy, it is a subsidiary of Stellantis Europe and one of 14 brands of mu ...
. Räikkönen won the
2007 Formula One World Championship while driving for Ferrari; he finished second overall twice and third three times. Räikkönen is the most successful
Finnish Formula One driver by several metrics, and has the seventh-most
podium finishes (103), third-most
fastest laps (46), and third-most
race starts (349) in Formula One history. He is known for his reserved personality and reluctance to participate in
public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...
events.
Räikkönen entered Formula One as a regular driver for
Sauber
Sauber Motorsport AG, currently competing in Formula One as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, and also known simply as Kick Sauber or Sauber, is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who pro ...
-
Petronas
Petroliam Nasional Berhad, commonly known as PETRONAS (stylised in all caps), is a Malaysian Multinational corporation, multinational petroleum, oil and natural gas, gas company headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. Established in 1974, it is a lega ...
in , having previously competed in just 23 car races. He joined
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
-
Mercedes in , and quickly established himself as a title contender by finishing runner-up in the championship to
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...
in 2003, and
Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin in Formula One, Aston Martin. Alonso has won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with ...
in 2005. Räikkönen's time at McLaren was marred by a succession of unreliable cars, prompting a move to Ferrari in 2007. This change saw him crowned Formula One World Drivers' Champion in his first season, pipping both McLaren drivers—
Lewis Hamilton
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles—tied with M ...
and Alonso—to the title by one point. In 2008, he equalled the record for the greatest number of fastest laps in a season for the second time.
Räikkönen left both Scuderia Ferrari and the sport after the
2009 season, his sole victory that year having come in
that season's Belgian Grand Prix due to driving an uncompetitive
Ferrari F60. On his return to Formula One, Räikkönen drove for
Lotus in
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
and , scoring the team's only victories. In September 2013, Ferrari announced his re-signing on a two-year contract, beginning in the season. This contract was subsequently extended until the end of the
2018 season. During his second Ferrari stint, Räikkönen scored 26 podiums, two pole positions, and a victory at the
2018 United States Grand Prix, 113 Grands Prix after
his last victory. Räikkönen finished among the top four overall in the championship on multiple occasions during his second Ferrari stint, finishing his total eight-year long Ferrari career with a third place in the 2018 championship. Räikkönen left Ferrari at the end of the 2018 season, and moved to
Alfa Romeo Racing
Italian motor manufacturer Alfa Romeo has participated multiple times in Formula One. The brand has competed in motor racing as both a constructor and engine supplier sporadically between and , and later as a commercial partner between and . ...
on a two-year contract, later extending it until the end of , after which he retired from Formula One.
In the
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is an international rallying series owned and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA. Inaugurated in 1973, it is the oldest FIA world championship after Formula One. E ...
, Räikkönen drove
Citroën
Citroën ()The double-dot diacritic over the 'e' is a diaeresis () indicating the two vowels are sounded separately, and not as a diphthong. is a French automobile brand. The "Automobiles Citroën" manufacturing company was founded on 4 June 19 ...
cars for their
Junior Team in
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
and for
ICE 1 Racing in
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
, managing to beat some more experienced rally drivers with a best result of fifth, a stage win and 10th in the championship in both seasons. Concurrently, Räikkönen also competed in
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
, making one-off appearances in the
Truck Series and the
Nationwide Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
in 2011. Since retiring from Formula One, he has made appearances in the
Cup Series in 2022 and 2023.
Career
Early career
Kimi-Matias Räikkönen was born on 17 October 1979 in
Espoo
Espoo (, ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located to the west of the capital, Helsinki, in southern Uusimaa. The population is approximately . It is the most populous Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. Espoo is part of the Helsi ...
, Finland.
He had a long line of success in
karting
Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motor ...
from the age of 10. His first race outside Finland was in
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
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 a round of 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.
Formula One (2001–2009)
Sauber (2001)

On the basis of these results,
Peter Sauber gave the Finn a test with the
Sauber
Sauber Motorsport AG, currently competing in Formula One as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, and also known simply as Kick Sauber or Sauber, is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who pro ...
Formula One team in September 2000 at the
Mugello Circuit
Mugello Circuit (in Italian language, italian: ; in English language, english: ''Mugello International Autodrome'') is a motorsport race track in Scarperia e San Piero, Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The circuit length is . It has 15 turns and a lo ...
.
[Tremayne, David. "Cool as Ice: Kimi Raikkonen". Formula One Magazine (official). December 2003. Page 63.] 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
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, Sauber signed Räikkönen for the season. However, some critics (including
FIA president
Max Mosley
Max Rufus Mosley (13 April 1940 – 23 May 2021) was a British businessman, lawyer and racing driver. He served as president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the Sport governing body, governing body for Formula One.
A ...
) voiced concerns over granting an F1
Super Licence
The FIA Super Licence is a driver's qualification allowing the holder to compete in the Formula One, Formula One World Championship. It is issued and managed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).
Requirements Super Licence
To ...
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
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA; ) is an international organisation with two primary functions surrounding use of the automobile. Its mobility division advocacy, advocates the interests of motoring organisations, the automot ...
(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.
McLaren (2002–2006)
Räikkönen, long linked to Sauber's engine supplier
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
, sufficiently impressed McLaren to earn a race seat in
Ron Dennis's team for , 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."
=2002
=
Räikkönen scored a third-place podium finish in his first race with McLaren at 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
David Marshall Coulthard (born 27 March 1971) is a British former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster from Scotland who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "DC", Coulthard was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' ...
. Räikkönen came close to winning his first Grand Prix in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
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
Allan McNish (born 29 December 1969) is a British former racing driver, commentator, and journalist from Scotland. He is a three-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, most recently in 2013 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2013, as well as a three-time wi ...
's
Toyota
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
on the circuit.
[Tremayne, David. "Cool as Ice: Kimi Raikkonen". Formula One Magazine (official). December 2003. Page 58.] 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.
=2003
=
At the season-opening , 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
Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...
to finish third. In
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, Räikkönen won his first race
after starting from seventh on the grid. During the next round in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, 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
Giancarlo "Giano" Fisichella (; born 14 January 1973), also known as Fisico or Fisi, is an Italian racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Fisichella won three Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons.
Bo ...
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
Imola (; or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical region Romagna ...
. At the , 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, causing Räikkönen to retire from the race.
While having engine problems, Räikkönen successfully defended second position from
Rubens Barrichello
Rubens Gonçalves Barrichello (; born 23 May 1972) is a Brazilian racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for Full Time Sports. Nicknamed "Rubinho" (), Barrichello competed in Formula One fro ...
in
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. He came extremely close to winning in
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, but lost by less than a second to
Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born 20 September 1975) is a Colombian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to , IndyCar between 1999 and 2022, and the NASCAR Cup Series between 2006 and 2024. Montoya won seven Formula One Grand ...
. Starting from the pitlane in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
after he went off track during qualifying with understeer, Räikkönen finished sixth, more than a minute adrift of race winner Michael Schumacher.

At the , 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
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
behind Schumacher, but finished one point ahead of him with a third-place finish at the . Räikkönen failed to finish the after being involved in an accident at the first corner with
Ralf Schumacher
Ralf Schumacher (born 30 June 1975) is a German former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Schumacher won six Formula One Grands Prix across 11 seasons.
Born and raised in North Rhine-Westp ...
and Rubens Barrichello. Räikkönen finished second at the next race, the .
Before the , the FIA were tipped-off by rivals Ferrari about an illegality in the
Michelin
Michelin ( , ), in full ("General Company of the Michelin Enterprises P.L.S."), is a French multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes '' région'' of France. It is the second largest t ...
tyre's tread width. Michelin were forced to bring in narrower tyres. Räikkönen eventually finished fourth in the race, losing five championship points to race winner Michael Schumacher.
Räikkönen took pole at the , but Michael Schumacher won the race with Räikkönen finishing second. After qualifying eighth in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, 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.
=2004
=

The 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
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, Räikkönen made 5 pit-stops but was classified fifth since the Williams-BMWs and the two Toyotas were disqualified. At the , Räikkönen finished sixth.
At the , McLaren rolled out the new MP4-19B. Räikkönen finished seventh behind his team-mate, David Coulthard. At
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-southwest of Towcester and northeast of Brackley, both accessed via the A43 road, A43 main ...
, Räikkönen took pole and went on to finish second behind Michael Schumacher. The McLarens qualified on the second row of the grid in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Räikkönen lost his rear wing on lap 13 of the race while following race leader Michael Schumacher. He retired again from the after starting from 10th place on the grid, again on lap 13. At the , Räikkönen qualified 10th, but took the lead on lap 11 and held onto it to take McLaren's only win of the season. He also took the fastest lap. The next weekend at
Monza
Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...
, Räikkönen again retired on lap 13, this time owing to electrical problems. At the next race in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, he finished third, only 1.4 seconds behind race winner Rubens Barrichello.
At the , Räikkönen was shunted by
Felipe Massa
Felipe Massa (; born 25 April 1981) is a Brazilian racing driver, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for TMG Racing, TMG and in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Riley Technologies, Riley. Massa competed in Formula One from to , and w ...
on the first lap of the race, which caused him handling problems. He finished sixth, 2.5 seconds behind
Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin in Formula One, Aston Martin. Alonso has won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with ...
. At the last race of the season, the , he battled Montoya for the lead and finished 1 second behind him in second. Räikkönen ended the year seventh, with 45 points, only one behind sixth placed
Jarno Trulli
Jarno Trulli (; born 13 July 1974) is an Italian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Trulli won the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix with Renault in Formula One, Renault.
He regularly competed in Formula ...
, and four podiums.
Despite the disappointment of the 2004 season, Räikkönen was still seen as one of the rising stars of the sport. 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
Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers.
History
Formula Three (adop ...
in 2005.
=2005
=

Räikkönen's start to the 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 , and ending the race with just a point. He looked set for a podium in
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
until a faulty tyre valve failed and dropped him out of the points.
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
saw him achieve his first podium of the season with a third place behind Renault's Alonso and the Toyota of
Jarno Trulli
Jarno Trulli (; born 13 July 1974) is an Italian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Trulli won the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix with Renault in Formula One, Renault.
He regularly competed in Formula ...
.
Räikkönen then achieved three consecutive poles in
San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, and a win after a
safety car
In motorsport, a safety car, or a pace car, is a car that limits the speed of competing cars or motorcycles on a racetrack in the case of a ''caution period,'' such as an obstruction on the track or bad weather. The safety car aims to enable the ...
strategy call by
Neil Martin
Neil Martin (born 20 October 1940) is a Scottish former association football, football player, who scored 100 league goals in both Scotland and England and won three full international caps for Scotland in the 1960s and 1970s. Known for his str ...
at
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
. 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 , Räikkönen flat-spotted his right front tyre, causing his suspension to fail while he led on the final lap, handing a further ten points to his rival Alonso. 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 to Räikkönen. The following weekend saw all the Michelin teams, including McLaren, withdraw from the for safety reasons. At the , 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 Alonso. A week later at the , 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
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, 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. At the opening of the , 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 went on to take the chequered flag with a convincing victory over Michael Schumacher, albeit after McLaren teammate
Montoya retired.
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 . Two weeks later at the , Räikkönen's pole position was taken from him as he received another 10-position grid penalty for an engine change. He eventually finished fourth.
He went on to win for the second year in a row in
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
at
Spa-Francorchamps. The following race, the , saw Alonso clinch the Drivers' Championship after finishing third behind Montoya and Räikkönen. In the
penultimate race of the year, at the
Suzuka Circuit
The , the , is a long motorsport race track located in Ino, Suzuka, Mie, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Japan and operated by Honda Mobilityland, a subsidiary of Honda, Honda Motor Co, Ltd. It has a capacity of 155,000. It is most well known by i ...
in Japan, Räikkönen took his seventh victory of the season after starting 17th on the 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
''Autosport'' is a global motorsport publishing brand headquartered based in Richmond, London, England. It was established in 1950 at the same time as the origins of the Formula One, Formula One World Championship.
Autosport began life as a we ...
'' "International Racing Driver of the Year" award.
=2006
=

In
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, starting from 22nd place on the grid, he drove through the field, ending third behind Alonso and Michael Schumacher. In
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, Räikkönen was hit from behind by
Red Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, List of Formula One constructors#Team's nationality, competing under an Austrian racing licence and based in ...
's
Christian Klien on the first lap and retired.
Having started the year clearly behind Renault, McLaren improved in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, where Räikkönen finished second after flat spotting a tyre and losing a wing end-plate. 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 , 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 , 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
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, 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 his retirement from this race, he was seen on live TV walking along the Monaco sidewalks still wearing his helmet, before going straight to the harbour instead of the pits and climbing aboard a yacht.
The 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
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, Räikkönen achieved another podium. In the , his teammate punted him out in an expensive seven car accident. The 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
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, Räikkönen qualified on pole. After a battle with
Jenson Button
Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...
, he finished the race for the first time in his career, ending in third place. Another pole came in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, but he collided with
Vitantonio Liuzzi after 25 laps, causing his fourth retirement of the season.
A first turn incident with
Scott Speed
Scott Andrew Speed (born January 24, 1983) is an American race car driver who has competed in numerous disciplines, including open-wheel racing, open-wheel, stock car racing, stock car, and rallycross racing.
In , Speed became the first American ...
at the 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 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 saw another retirement for Räikkönen due to throttle problems. His last two Grands Prix, in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
and
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, 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.
Räikkönen's
British Formula 3 Championship team
Räikkönen Robertson Racing claimed their first major success, with British driver
Mike Conway
Michael Robert Conway (born 19 August 1983) is a British professional racing driver. He lives in Sevenoaks, Kent and is currently competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship with Toyota Motorsport GmbH, Toyota Gazoo Racing.
Early caree ...
winning the
2006 British F3 International Series title and the prestigious
Macau Grand Prix
The Macau Grand Prix (; ) is an annual motorsport road racing event for automobiles and motorcycles held on the Guia Circuit in Macau. The event includes the Formula Regional and Motorcycle Grand Prix title races, with other races for Touri ...
.
Ferrari (2007–2009)
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
Felipe Massa (; born 25 April 1981) is a Brazilian racing driver, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for TMG Racing, TMG and in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Riley Technologies, Riley. Massa competed in Formula One from to , and w ...
, who had been driving for Ferrari since 2006.
=2007: World Champion
=

Räikkönen started the season in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
by taking pole position, setting the fastest lap, and becoming the first driver since
Nigel Mansell
Nigel Ernest James Mansell (; born 8 August 1953) is a British former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Mansell won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won 31 Grands Prix across 15 seasons ...
in to win his first Grand Prix with Ferrari.
At the , Räikkönen was passed by
Lewis Hamilton
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles—tied with M ...
at the start and remained behind him for the rest of the race, finishing third. In
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, 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 , 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 , Räikkönen struck a barrier in qualifying and broke his right front suspension. He started 16th and finished eighth.
In
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, Räikkönen qualified fourth and finished fifth, Räikkönen's team-mate Massa was disqualified. At the , 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
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, 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 , 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 Alonso pitted for the second time in the closing stages to pass him. Räikkönen led to the end of the race.
At the , 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
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, Räikkönen qualified his car in fourth place, but started from third after 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
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, 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
Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...
'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
is a motorsport race track standing in the foothills of Mount Fuji, in Oyama, Shizuoka, Oyama, Suntō District, Shizuoka, Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It was built in the early 1960s. In the 1980s, Fuji Speedway was used for the ...
in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, 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
In motorsport, a safety car, or a pace car, is a car that limits the speed of competing cars or motorcycles on a racetrack in the case of a ''caution period,'' such as an obstruction on the track or bad weather. The safety car aims to enable the ...
, 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
Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (; born 19 October 1981) is a Finnish auto racing, racing and rally driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Kovalainen won the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix with McLaren. In sportscar racing, Kovalainen won Super GT ...
for second.
At the in
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, 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 .

Räikkönen took the 2007 Formula One Drivers' title with victory in the at
Interlagos
Interlagos is a neighborhood located in the district of Socorro (district of São Paulo), Socorro in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Its name comes from the fact that the region is located between two large reservoirs, Guarapiranga and Billings ...
, 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
Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...
,
Robert Kubica
Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing driver, racing and rally driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse. Kubica competed in Formula One between and , and the World Rally Championship ...
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 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
2024 Formula One season, Räikkönen's 2007 title triumph remains the most recent World Drivers' Championship win for a Scuderia Ferrari driver.
In January 2008, Räikkönen was beaten by
Tero Pitkämäki in the race for the annually chosen
Finnish Sports Personality of the Year award; finishing in
second place in the competition.
=2008
=
After a disappointing first race in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, where Räikkönen eventually finished eighth after qualifying only 15th due to a mechanical problem, he won his first race of the season at the , finishing ahead of
Robert Kubica
Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing driver, racing and rally driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse. Kubica competed in Formula One between and , and the World Rally Championship ...
and
Heikki Kovalainen
Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (; born 19 October 1981) is a Finnish auto racing, racing and rally driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Kovalainen won the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix with McLaren. In sportscar racing, Kovalainen won Super GT ...
. His victory in Kuala Lumpur came on the fifth anniversary of his maiden victory at the same track. In
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, 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
Felipe Massa (; born 25 April 1981) is a Brazilian racing driver, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for TMG Racing, TMG and in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Riley Technologies, Riley. Massa competed in Formula One from to , and w ...
. He also secured the lead in the championship.

In
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, 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.
At the , Räikkönen qualified in fourth place. Despite damaging his front wing in the early stages after a collision with fellow Finn Heikki Kovalainen, Räikkönen was still able to set the fastest lap and finish in third place.
In
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, Räikkönen qualified in second behind teammate Felipe Massa. Räikkönen stayed second behind Massa until he was given a drive-through penalty for an infringement by the team on his car and dropped down to sixth. He was set for fifth until an incident with
Adrian Sutil, when Räikkönen lost control on the damp track after exiting the tunnel, and hit Sutil's car in the rear. Räikkönen's car was not badly damaged and he was able to finish in ninth after replacing his front wing, also setting the fastest lap in the process. After the race,
Mike Gascoyne, the Chief Technology Officer of Force India announced they were filing official protests with the stewards over the incident, demanding a ban for Räikkönen. However, the stewards decided not to penalise him.

In
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, Räikkönen qualified third. In the race, he set the fastest lap during the first stint while catching up with Robert Kubica who was in second place. The safety car was deployed when Adrian Sutil's car broke down in a dangerous position. Both he and Kubica jumped ahead of race leader Hamilton when they pitted during the safety car period. As there was a red light at the end of the pitlane, Räikkönen and Kubica stopped alongside each other and waited for the signal to allow them back onto the circuit. Hamilton failed to notice the red light and hit the rear of Räikkönen's Ferrari, eliminating both cars.
Räikkönen went on to take his 16th pole position in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, which was the 200th pole for Scuderia Ferrari. Räikkönen dominated the race as he set the fastest lap and had a six-second lead until a bank exhaust failure some halfway through the race reduced his engine's power. He gave up the lead to his teammate Massa, but was far enough ahead of
Toyota's Jarno Trulli
Jarno Trulli (; born 13 July 1974) is an Italian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Trulli won the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix with Renault in Formula One, Renault.
He regularly competed in Formula ...
, to secure second place and eight points.
Räikkönen qualified third at the . Before the race, Räikkönen pushed noted photographer Paul-Henri Cahier to the ground as he lined up a close-up shot. Räikkönen's manager Steve Robertson claimed the driver was provoked by Cahier touching him with his lens and standing on his belongings, but Cahier disputed this version of events. The race was in wet conditions and Räikkönen stayed third at the first corner behind Hamilton and Kovalainen. He kept pace and got up to second when Kovalainen spun. He then chased after Hamilton, and set the fastest lap as he drew up directly behind the McLaren. During the first pitstop, Ferrari did not change the intermediates on his car in the hope that the track would become dry. However, the track was hit by another shower, and Räikkönen rapidly lost pace, and dropped down to sixth before finally pitting for new tyres. He finished fourth, a lap down.
At the , Räikkönen qualified sixth and dropped down a place at the first corner. He was running fifth when the safety car came out after a crash involving
Timo Glock. His teammate Felipe Massa was ahead of him on the track, and as a result, Räikkönen was forced to wait behind Massa when the pitlane opened. This dropped him down to 12th, but he eventually finished in sixth.
At the , Räikkönen again qualified sixth. He lost a position to Alonso at the beginning of the race but managed to finish third owing to Hamilton's tyre puncture, passing Alonso during the pitstops and Massa's retirement after an engine failure.

During the , Räikkönen qualified fourth and lost a place at the start to Kovalainen. He stayed fifth until the second round of pitstops when he exited before the fuel hose was properly disengaged from his car and left one of the mechanics with a fractured toe. Two laps later, he suffered a similar engine failure to Massa in the previous race; a connecting rod in his engine broke and he was forced to retire.
At the , Räikkönen again qualified fourth. He passed Kovalainen and Massa at the start to be second, and took the lead from Hamilton on the second lap. He pulled away, setting the fastest lap of the race and built a five-second gap. He looked set to win but owing to a late-race rain shower, Hamilton closed right up to him and tried to pass him at the final chicane with two laps to go. Hamilton cut the chicane and rejoined ahead of Räikkönen. He let Räikkönen take the place back. Hamilton then repassed him for the lead. The two battled on for the rest of the lap, with Räikkönen retaking the lead when the two stumbled upon spinning backmarker
Nico Rosberg
Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...
, forcing Hamilton onto the grass. Räikkönen spun at the next corner and fell behind Hamilton again. While trying to catch up, he lost control of the car, smashed into a wall and retired.
At the , which was held in extremely wet conditions, Räikkönen qualified 14th. He stayed in 14th position for the first two stints. He climbed to ninth position in the third and last stint in which he also set the fastest lap of the race.
In
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, 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
Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...
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 10th of the season. This equalled Michael Schumacher's 2004 record of ten fastest laps in a Formula One season.
At the at the
Fuji Speedway
is a motorsport race track standing in the foothills of Mount Fuji, in Oyama, Shizuoka, Oyama, Suntō District, Shizuoka, Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It was built in the early 1960s. In the 1980s, Fuji Speedway was used for the ...
circuit, Räikkönen qualified second on the grid, behind Hamilton, and took the lead at the start. Closing up to turn 1, Hamilton attempted to pass on the inside, braked late and went wide, forcing Räikkönen to also go wide. Räikkönen lost out heavily and went down to seventh position. He gained places after a collision between Hamilton and Massa, Kovalainen's hydraulic failure and an overtaking manoeuvre on Jarno Trulli. He eventually finished third, behind Renault's Alonso and BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica. This result meant that it was impossible for Räikkönen to retain his Drivers' Championship title for the second year.
In
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, Räikkönen qualified second behind Hamilton. At the start he stayed second with his teammate and now Ferrari's world championship contender, Massa, behind him in third place. However, with Räikkönen out of the running for the world championship he let Massa through into second place on lap 49, to help the latter gain two additional points in his pursuit of Hamilton in the world championship race.
At the , 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.
=2009
=

At the start of the season in the , 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.

In
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, Räikkönen topped the time sheet in the second practice session. Räikkönen was ninth in qualifying.
Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Vettel won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won consecutively from to with Red Bull, and rema ...
and
Rubens Barrichello
Rubens Gonçalves Barrichello (; born 23 May 1972) is a Brazilian racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for Full Time Sports. Nicknamed "Rubinho" (), Barrichello competed in Formula One fro ...
's ten and five-place penalties respectively meant that he was promoted to seventh. During the race, rain was predicted and the team took a gamble to change Räikkönen to full wet tyres while the track was still dry. The gamble did not pay off, and Räikkönen fell down the field. By the time the race was stopped on the 33rd lap due to torrential rain, Räikkönen was classified 14th.
Räikkönen's season did not get any better in Round 3 in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
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
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, Räikkönen secured sixth place and Ferrari's first points of the year, but was disappointed by the team's performance. He retired from the due to a hydraulics failure after qualifying from the back of the grid.
At the , Räikkönen secured second place in qualifying, Ferrari and Räikkönen's best qualifying of the year so far. He admitted that he was still disappointed because he missed out on pole narrowly to the Brawn of
Jenson Button
Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...
. Räikkönen lost out to Rubens Barrichello at the start of the race, dropping back to third. He maintained this position until the chequered flag.
At the , Räikkönen qualified sixth, but damaged his front wing on the first lap. He could only finish ninth, out of the points. At the , Räikkönen qualified ninth but a good start saw him move up to fifth. However, he dropped to eighth during the pit stops because of traffic and remained until the finish.
At the , Räikkönen qualified ninth after a damp session. In the race however he collided with the
Force India
Force India Formula One Team Limited, commonly known as Force India and later Sahara Force India, was a Formula One racing team and constructor based in Silverstone, United Kingdom, with an Indian licence. The team was formed in October 200 ...
of
Adrian Sutil like in
the previous year in Monte Carlo, as the German was emerging from a pitstop. While Sutil managed to recover back to the pits to replace a nosecone, Räikkönen was forced to retire a few laps later with radiator damage as a result of the incident.
At the , Räikkönen took his and Ferrari's best finish of the season in second, after making a great start from seventh. After the first corner Räikkönen was in fourth place, but when Fernando Alonso retired after his early first stop, Räikkönen moved up to third. Räikkönen overtook Webber for second place at the first round of pit stops when Räikkönen and Webber pitted on the same lap. Räikkönen had a clean pit-stop, whereas Webber had a problem and was released into the path of the Ferrari. Räikkönen and Webber avoided collision, and Webber had to slot in behind Räikkönen. On his second pit stop, Räikkönen had a problem with an exhaust pipe. However, having built quite a gap between him and Webber, he held on to take second place.

At the , he qualified sixth. He jumped to fourth at the start of the race. He then moved up to third after the second pit stops jumping
Heikki Kovalainen
Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (; born 19 October 1981) is a Finnish auto racing, racing and rally driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Kovalainen won the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix with McLaren. In sportscar racing, Kovalainen won Super GT ...
for the last podium place, and stayed in that position until the end of the race, claiming his second straight podium.
At the , he qualified sixth, jumping to second at the start of the race. After the safety car was removed, he passed
Giancarlo Fisichella
Giancarlo "Giano" Fisichella (; born 14 January 1973), also known as Fisico or Fisi, is an Italian racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Fisichella won three Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons.
Bo ...
to take the race lead and led all the way to the chequered flag for his first race win in 25 races, and the first and only one for Ferrari in 2009. It was Räikkönen's fourth victory in the last five Belgian Grands Prix, bolstering his reputation as "The King of Spa".
Räikkönen continued his good form at the , qualifying and finishing third, after Hamilton's last-lap crash. It was his fourth consecutive podium finish.
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
saw the end of a great run for Räikkönen where he only finished 10th after qualifying 12th.
In
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, 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
Jaime Víctor Alguersuari Escudero (; born 23 March 1990), also known by his stage name Squire, is a Spanish former racing driver, sports broadcasting, broadcaster and DJ, who competed in Formula One from to .
Born and raised in Barcelona, Al ...
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
Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...
.
In
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, 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
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
, the last race of the season, Räikkönen qualified 11th. He lost a place at the start of the race to
Kamui Kobayashi
is a Japanese racing driver and motorsport executive, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe, Toyota and in Super Formula for KC Motorgroup, KCMG. Kobayashi competed in Formula One from to . In end ...
. Räikkönen finished 12th, out of the points.
Leaving Formula One (2010–2011)
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 . 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
Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...
and
Nico Rosberg
Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...
.
Toyota F1
Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One team owned by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to join Formula One in 1999, and after extensive testing with thei ...
, before it pulled out of Formula One, offered Räikkönen a driving contract to replace
Timo Glock in 2010. The
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
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
Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...
team in . 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
Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing driver, racing and rally driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse. Kubica competed in Formula One between and , and the World Rally Championship ...
. 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:
However Räikkönen angrily shot down the suggestion that he would race, claiming that Renault had simply used his name for "their own marketing purposes".
Return to Formula One (2012–2021)
Lotus (2012–2013)

In the week before the
2011 Singapore Grand Prix, several news sources reported that Räikkönen was eyeing a return to Formula One for with
Williams, after he was spotted at the team's headquarters in
Grove, Oxfordshire. On 29 November 2011, it was announced that Räikkönen would be returning to Formula 1 in 2012, signing a two-year contract with
Lotus.
=2012
=
Räikkönen began the season by qualifying 17th for the 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 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 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 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 , after having qualified in fifth place, which had been promoted to fourth as a result of a penalty given to Lewis Hamilton.
In the Räikkönen qualified in eighth but finished one place lower in ninth place. For the 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 at the
Valencia Street Circuit he finished second behind Fernando Alonso. In the he finished fifth, after having qualified in sixth place.
During qualifying for the , 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
Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Vettel won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won consecutively from to with Red Bull, and rema ...
was penalised for an illegal overtaking manoeuvre.
For the 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.
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 . That did not stop Räikkönen from qualifying fourth. He went on to finish third behind
Jenson Button
Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...
and Sebastian Vettel. A week later at at Monza, Räikkönen qualified seventh and finished the race in fifth.
At the , Räikkönen qualified 12th as his Lotus E20 could not match the pace of the top 3 teams and eventually finished sixth. At the , 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 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 Vettel after 16 rounds of the season, Räikkönen said he took inspiration from the season
which he won at the last round in after Lewis Hamilton suffered gearbox problems.
At the , 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 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 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
Ayrton Senna da Silva (; 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Senna won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with McLaren, and—at the time of his death—held ...
. 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
Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge (district), Tandridge district of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valle ...
and a
Marussia
Marussia Motors ( ) was a Russian sports car company founded in 2007. It was the first Russian company to produce a supercar. It designed, and manufactured prototypes of both the B1 and the B2 sport cars. Marussia was led by former motor racer Ni ...
. 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 Vettel.
On 3 December 2012 through a poll in a
French auto racing website, ''www.toileF1.com'' Räikkönen was named the driver of the year.
=2013
=
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 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
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, but was demoted three places for impeding
Nico Rosberg
Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...
during qualifying. He finished the race seventh, behind team-mate Grosjean, after damaging his car at the start.
At the , 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
Sergio Michel "Checo" Pérez Mendoza (; born 26 January 1990) is a Mexican racing driver, who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Pérez was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Red Bull, and won Gr ...
for position. In the 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
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
. At the , Räikkönen started fourth and finished second thanks to a three-stop strategy. At the next race in
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, 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
Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German racing driver who competes in Formula One for Sauber. In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Hülkenberg won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2015 with Por ...
to gain 10th place. In the process, it continued his streak of 23 consecutive points finishes, one shy of the record of 24 set by
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...
across three seasons between 2001 and 2003.
With his Lotus struggling during the , Räikkönen finished ninth. On 30 June 2013 at the , Räikkönen finished in the points for the 25th consecutive race, breaking Schumacher's record. He finished fifth but believed second place could have been possible had he pitted during the safety car period. The result kept him in third place in the championship. At the , Räikkönen qualified fourth and finished second, only a second behind Vettel with the help of the safety car. Räikkönen struggled in qualifying for the , unable to capitalise on strong times earlier in the weekend. He qualified sixth but finished second – for the fifth time at the circuit – holding off a last minute charge from Vettel with fresher tyres. The result promoted him to second in the Drivers' Championship, one point ahead of Fernando Alonso and 38 points behind championship leader, Vettel.
At the , Räikkönen finished fastest in Q2 but struggled during the wetter final session, qualifying eighth behind his teammate. Although Räikkönen did gain some places in the race, he was eventually forced to retire with a brake related issue on lap 27, ending the Finn's record-breaking run – also numbering 27 – of consecutive points finishes. The DNF also ended his chances of beating the most consecutive race finishes – a record held by
Nick Heidfeld at 41 finishes – Räikkönen recorded 38.

He failed to score again at the after losing his front wing at the start. He managed to make his way up the order, but was unable to pass
Jenson Button
Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...
for a point scoring position. On the week following the race, it was announced that Räikkönen would not continue with Lotus for the season, and instead join Fernando Alonso at Ferrari.
Before the following , 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.
In the , Räikkönen had recurring back problems during the practice sessions, which at first put his participation in the race in question. He qualified only 13th, but was still able to return to the podium, clawing to the third place partly thanks to a safety car intervention in the middle of the race. At the , he qualified ninth and finished fifth.
Two weeks later, at the , 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.
In the following questions about Räikkönen's relationship with his team were further fuelled by his absence from the usual Thursday media events. Räikkönen had reportedly only left his home at the last moment to make it to the Grand Prix after considering not racing at all in the event. On Friday, Räikkönen then publicly threatened that he would not continue to race with Lotus in the remaining two Grands Prix of the season after Abu Dhabi unless the salary dispute was resolved. In the Saturday's qualifying, Räikkönen made it to fifth, but was demoted to the 22nd and last grid spot due to his E21 car failing a post-qualifying floor deflection test. In the race, he immediately made contact with
Giedo van der Garde's
Caterham
Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge (district), Tandridge district of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valle ...
in the first corner of the first lap and broke his Lotus's right front suspension, forcing Räikkönen to retire on the first lap for the first time since the
2006 United States Grand Prix
The 2006 United States Grand Prix (formally the 2006 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix) was a Formula One auto racing, motor race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on 2 July 2006. It was the tenth race of the 2006 For ...
. 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 , 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
Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (; born 19 October 1981) is a Finnish auto racing, racing and rally driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Kovalainen won the 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix with McLaren. In sportscar racing, Kovalainen won Super GT ...
.
Return to Ferrari (2014–2018)

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 ), starting from .
He revealed that it was for monetary reasons that he left Lotus.
=2014
=
Räikkönen was on for a podium finish at the
Monaco Grand Prix
The Monaco Grand Prix () is a Formula One motor racing event held annually on the Circuit de Monaco, in late May or early June. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the wo ...
. However,
Max Chilton punctured Räikkönen's left-rear tyre while unlapping himself, 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
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, 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.
=2015
=

Räikkönen had to retire from the first race of the season in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
due to a loose wheel following a pitstop. Following that mishap, he recovered to finish fourth both in
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
and
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. Another pit issue befell Räikkönen during practice for the 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 , 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 . He also commented that, both the engine and downforce had been significantly improved and that the car handled much more to his liking. In a post-race interview, Ferrari team boss,
Maurizio Arrivabene
Maurizio Arrivabene (born 7 March 1957) is an Italian manager and sports director.
Arrivabene was team principal of Formula One team Scuderia Ferrari. He was appointed team principal in November 2014, replacing Marco Mattiacci, and was replaced ...
, described this result as a sign that Räikkönen "is back" and that he "showed what a race animal he is", also implying that if he had a few more race laps available, Räikkönen would have challenged Hamilton for the race win.
At the next race of the season in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, Räikkönen was unhappy with the setup of the car and was able to qualify only in seventh place. However, he had a good opening lap in the race and made up 2 places to finish the race in fifth position. Räikkönen termed
Monaco GP qualifying session to be a "disaster"; he was only able to qualify in sixth position, with his teammate Vettel qualifying in third, followed by
Daniel Ricciardo and
Daniil Kvyat in the Red Bulls. In the race, Räikkönen was able to move up to fifth place, before being controversially overtaken by
Ricciardo, and thus held his qualifying position to finish the race in sixth. Räikkönen put up a strong qualifying performance at
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
to take third on the grid behind the two Mercedes drivers. During the race, while on the out-lap from a pitstop, Räikkönen suffered a repeat of the incident at the previous year's race and spun at the hairpin, which was attributed to an engine torque mapping issue. This caused him to lose his third place to
Valtteri Bottas. In the
Austrian Grand Prix he was involved in a big crash with Fernando Alonso which left Alonso's McLaren on top of Räikkönen's Ferrari. However both left unscathed. After a disappointing showing caused by changing weather in Great Britain, Räikkönen bounced back strongly running second behind Vettel looking set for a 1–2 in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, when a technical failure regarding the energy recovery system meant he lost straightline speed. An untimely safety car meant losing further positions after the restart and after a pitstop to re-fire the engine meant he dropped out of the points he retired when the problem did not fix itself as he had lost the chance to get back past any cars.
On 19 August, Ferrari announced that Räikkönen had extended his contract with the team for the 2016 season, taking his total tally with the team to six seasons spread out over a total of ten years. Räikkönen said that 'his dream went on' and confirmed that he wanted Ferrari to be the team where he ended his career. At the race following the announcement (
Spa), miscommunication from the team coupled with gearbox change penalties saw Räikkönen start from 17th on the grid. However, he managed to overtake the middle pack and finished the race in seventh, after Vettel had a tire blowout on the 42nd lap causing him to lose a third-place finish.
Räikkönen qualified on the front row for Ferrari's home race at
Monza
Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...
, but a complete lack of movement for a few seconds at the start saw him drop down the order. Showing good pace however, he managed to pick his way from the back of the field to fifth. Räikkönen blamed a 'clutch positioning' problem, while team boss Arrivabene suggested Räikkönen had caused the
anti-stall to kick in himself due to 'messing with his fingers' although he clarified it saying he did not fully know at the time. Nevertheless, he remained at one podium of the season, as teammate Vettel finished second to take his tally to eight in twelve races.
At the
Singapore Grand Prix, Räikkönen showed consistent performances in the practice sessions and qualified in third, behind 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.
=2016
=

For the second year in a row, Räikkönen had to retire from the first race of the season in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, after a fire broke out in his airbox. Räikkönen finished in the second place at the
Bahrain Grand Prix
The Bahrain Grand Prix (), officially known as the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, is a Formula One motor racing event in Bahrain. The first race took place at the Bahrain International Circuit on 4 April 2004. It made hist ...
while his teammate
Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Vettel won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won consecutively from to with Red Bull, and rema ...
did not start the race after his car broke down on the formation lap. Räikkönen outpaced 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
The Russian Grand Prix () was an annual motor racing event held at Sochi Autodrom – a permanent circuit built around the Olympic Park in Sochi – as part of the Formula One World Championship.
The race was first held briefly in the 1910s ...
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
Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
in second place to take his third podium of the season in the
Spanish Grand Prix
The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...
finishing ahead of Vettel who was third.
Räikkönen showed greatly improved qualifying performances during the 2016 season, out-qualifying teammate Vettel 11–10.
=2017
=
Räikkönen started the 2017 season with fourth in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, fifth in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
and then again fourth in
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
. Räikkönen scored his first podium of the season at the following
Russian Grand Prix
The Russian Grand Prix () was an annual motor racing event held at Sochi Autodrom – a permanent circuit built around the Olympic Park in Sochi – as part of the Formula One World Championship.
The race was first held briefly in the 1910s ...
, finishing third. He retired from the
Spanish Grand Prix
The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...
after being involved in an incident on the first lap.
Räikkönen scored his first pole position in 129 races at the , 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
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
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
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
.
Räikkönen qualified second at the
British Grand Prix
The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...
, but suffered a tyre failure late in the race while in second place, however he still managed to finish third, ahead of teammate Vettel. At the , Räikkönen qualified second. In the race, after Vettel – who was in first position – made his pitstop first, Räikkönen was driving faster than him on older tyres, but Ferrari pitted Räikkönen early to defend Vettel from cars behind him, denying Räikkönen a chance of overcutting Vettel, eventually finishing second. He then finished fourth in
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
and fifth in
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. Räikkönen qualified fourth at the
Singapore Grand Prix, but after getting a great start, was hit by
Max Verstappen
Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
, who avoided Vettel's aggressive move across the circuit, which ultimately ended up in a crash that put all three drivers out of the race.
In
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
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
The United States Grand Prix is a motor racing event that has been held on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize. The Grand Prix later became part of the Formula One World Championship. , the Grand Prix has been held ...
. He repeated this performance in the and , scoring three consecutive podiums. A fourth-place finish in
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
secured fourth position in the drivers' championship for Räikkönen.
=2018
=

Räikkönen renewed his contract with Ferrari for the season on 22 August 2017. He qualified second for the first race in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and finished third, after being jumped by Vettel during the virtual safety car period. At the
Bahrain Grand Prix
The Bahrain Grand Prix (), officially known as the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, is a Formula One motor racing event in Bahrain. The first race took place at the Bahrain International Circuit on 4 April 2004. It made hist ...
, 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
Esteban José Jean-Pierre Ocon-Khelfane (; born 17 September 1996) is a French racing driver who competes in Formula One for Haas F1 Team, Haas. Ocon won the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix with Alpine F1 Team, Alpine.
Born and raised in Normandy to ...
to eventually finish second. Räikkönen's engine failed during practice at the
Spanish Grand Prix
The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...
, forcing him to change engines. This meant that he missed Ferrari's upgraded engine introduced two races later in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
and had to race with the old specification engine until the 13th round in
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
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
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
and sixth in Canada.
A third-place finish in the
French Grand Prix
The French Grand Prix (), formerly known as the Grand Prix de l'ACF (Automobile Club de France), is an auto race held as part of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One World Championship. It is one of the oldest ...
started a run of consecutive podiums for Räikkönen. He would finish second at the following
Austrian Grand Prix, then at the
British Grand Prix
The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...
he recovered from a controversial 10-second penalty to finish third, after which he finished third again at the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
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
Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German racing driver who competes in Formula One for Sauber. In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Hülkenberg won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2015 with Por ...
.
Räikkönen took pole position at the
Italian Grand Prix
The Italian Grand Prix () is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, motor racing Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been held since 1921 ...
, breaking
Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born 20 September 1975) is a Colombian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to , IndyCar between 1999 and 2022, and the NASCAR Cup Series between 2006 and 2024. Montoya won seven Formula One Grand ...
'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) and a laptime of 1:19.119. 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
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, fourth in
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and fifth in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, where his car sustained damage from a hit by Verstappen.
Räikkönen won the
United States Grand Prix
The United States Grand Prix is a motor racing event that has been held on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize. The Grand Prix later became part of the Formula One World Championship. , the Grand Prix has been held ...
, becoming, at 39, F1's oldest race winner since
Nigel Mansell
Nigel Ernest James Mansell (; born 8 August 1953) is a British former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Mansell won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won 31 Grands Prix across 15 seasons ...
in 1994, and the 13th oldest F1 race winner ever. 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
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
with an electrical issue, but nonetheless, he finished third in the Drivers' Championship in his final season with Ferrari.
Alfa Romeo (2019–2021)
=2019
=
On 11 September 2018, it was announced that Räikkönen would leave Ferrari at the end of the season to rejoin
Sauber
Sauber Motorsport AG, currently competing in Formula One as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, and also known simply as Kick Sauber or Sauber, is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who pro ...
on a two-year contract, the team he made his Formula One debut with in . Räikkönen made his Sauber return in the postseason
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
Pirelli tyre test driving their
2018 car. The Sauber team was renamed
Alfa Romeo Racing
Italian motor manufacturer Alfa Romeo has participated multiple times in Formula One. The brand has competed in motor racing as both a constructor and engine supplier sporadically between and , and later as a commercial partner between and . ...
prior to the start of the 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
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, starting from sixth on the grid, but he was hit by
Max Verstappen
Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...
at the first corner. The pointless streak ended at the , 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 . 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.
=2020
=
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
Tuscan may refer to:
Places
* A person from, or something of, from, or related to Tuscany, a region of Italy
* Tuscan Archipelago, islands off Tuscany, Italy.
* Tuscan, South Australia was a railway siding and locality in the Murray Mallee regio ...
and again ninth at the
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, while he scored the team's best qualifying result with eighth in
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. During the
Italian Grand Prix
The Italian Grand Prix () is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, motor racing Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been held since 1921 ...
at Monza, Räikkönen ran as high as second after a red flag and penalties to
Lewis Hamilton
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles—tied with M ...
and Giovinazzi, however ultimately finished 11th and outside the points. These results 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
Rubens Gonçalves Barrichello (; born 23 May 1972) is a Brazilian racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competes in the Stock Car Pro Series for Full Time Sports. Nicknamed "Rubinho" (), Barrichello competed in Formula One fro ...
'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.
=2021
=
Räikkönen continued with Alfa Romeo in alongside Giovinazzi.
Before the season started Räikkönen had decided to retire at the end of the season. He tested positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
on the weekend of the
Dutch Grand Prix
The Dutch Grand Prix () is an annual Formula One World Championship auto racing event, held at Circuit Zandvoort, North Holland, the Netherlands, from 1950 through 1985, and after a 35 year hiatus, from 2021 to 2026.
It has been a part of the ...
and was replaced by reserve driver
Robert Kubica
Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing driver, racing and rally driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for AF Corse. Kubica competed in Formula One between and , and the World Rally Championship ...
at the Dutch and
Italian Grand Prix
The Italian Grand Prix () is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, motor racing Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been held since 1921 ...
. Räikkönen scored his first points of the season in
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
, with more points in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
,
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. 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
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
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.
Other racing
Rallying
Räikkönen made his initial rally debut at the
Arctic Lapland Rally, which ran from 23 to 24 January 2009, driving a
Tommi Mäkinen Racing-prepared Abarth Grande Punto S2000. He finished in 13th place. Räikkönen made his WRC debut in the
2009 Rally Finland, which took place between 30 July and 2 August, starting just four days after his second-place finish in the
Hungarian Grand Prix.
[Raikkonen to make rally debut](_blank)
, BBC News, 29 June 2009 21:52 GMT (. Retrieved 30 June 2009) He was running third in group N and 15th overall before crashing out in
Väärinmaja, last stage of Saturday.
On 4 December 2009, it was announced that Räikkönen would altogether shift from Formula 1 to the
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is an international rallying series owned and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA. Inaugurated in 1973, it is the oldest FIA world championship after Formula One. E ...
for the
2010 season as a full-time driver for the
Citroën Junior Team, and that he would be driving a
Red Bull
Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks created and owned by the Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With a market share of 43%, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2020, and the third most valuable soft drink brand, behind Coca-Cola and ...
-sponsored
Citroën C4 WRC with his co-driver, Kaj Lindström. As members of the team, the pair were scheduled to participate in 12 of 13 rallies in the 2010 WRC calendar, the exception being Rally New Zealand.
On 3 April 2010, Räikkönen scored his first WRC points when he finished eighth in the
Jordan Rally
The Jordan Rally () is a rallying competition held in Jordan. It was a new addition to the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calendar for the 2008 season, and the first occurrence of a WRC event in the Middle East. The rally was previously part ...
. Consequently, he became the second driver after
Carlos Reutemann
Carlos Alberto "Lole" Reutemann (12 April 1942 – 7 July 2021) was an Argentine racing driver and politician, who competed in Formula One from to and served as the Governor of Santa Fe from 1999 to 2003. Reutemann was runner-up in the Form ...
to score championship points in both Formula One and the World Rally Championship. In the next WRC event, the
Rally of Turkey, Räikkönen improved his best result with a fifth-place finish, 6m 44.3s off the winner,
Sébastien Loeb. This result saw him beat established and more experienced drivers in the field.
In the
2010 Rally Finland
The 2010 Neste Oil Rally Finland was the 60th Rally Finland and the eighth round of the 2010 World Rally Championship season. The rally took place over July 29–31, and is based in Jyväskylä, the capital of the Central Finland region. The rally ...
, the retired four-time World Rally Champion
Juha Kankkunen entered the race and said that if Räikkönen cannot beat him then he might as well go back to Formula One. The two were in a close battle for seventh until Räikkönen had a crash on the 12th stage of the rally. He finished seventh in the
Rallye Deutschland
The ADAC Rallye Deutschland is a Rallying, rally event held in Germany. The event was first held in 1982 and originally hosted by e.g. Frankfurt, Mainz and Koblenz. In 2000, the rally was relocated to the region around Trier. Previously part of ...
, his second ever asphalt rally, while scoring his first ever career stage win on the last stage of the rally.
On 18 September 2010, Räikkönen achieved his first rally win when he participated in the Rallye Vosgien 2010 in France. He won all six stages in the asphalt rally. Räikkönen could not start in the
Rally Catalunya because he crashed during the shakedown, leaving the roll cage damaged, and the team did not have enough time to repair it. Subsequently, Räikkönen decided to not take part in the rally at all, even when he could by super rally rules. The reason was stated to be saving the car. He would finish eighth in the
Wales Rally GB
Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international rallying, motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship ( ...
, the final rally of the season. He scored 25 points during the season to finish 10th overall in the championship, the best result for a rookie that year.
Räikkönen entered the
2011 World Rally Championship season
The 2011 World Rally Championship was the 39th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 13 rallies, beginning with Rally Sweden on 10 February and ended with Wales Rally GB on 13 November.
Sébastien Loeb claimed h ...
under his own team,
ICE 1 Racing. He drove a
Citroën DS3 WRC. He finished eighth in the opening round,
Rally Sweden
The Rally Sweden (), formerly the KAK-Rally, the International Swedish Rally, and later the Uddeholm Swedish Rally, is an automobile rally competition held in February in Värmland, Sweden and relocated to Umeå in 2022. First held in 1950, as a ...
. Skipping the Mexico event, he next competed in
Rally Portugal and finished seventh. He finished sixth in the following
Jordan Rally
The Jordan Rally () is a rallying competition held in Jordan. It was a new addition to the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calendar for the 2008 season, and the first occurrence of a WRC event in the Middle East. The rally was previously part ...
, but would skip the next two rounds.
Räikkönen returned in the
Acropolis Rally
The Acropolis Rally of Greece () is a Rallying, rally competition that is part of the World Rally Championship, World Rally Championship (WRC). The rally is held on very dusty, rough, rocky and fast mountain roads in mainland Greece, usually dur ...
, finishing seventh. He would score points in his home rally,
Rally Finland
Rally Finland (formerly known as the Neste Rally Finland, Neste Oil Rally Finland, 1000 Lakes Rally and Rally of the Thousand Lakes; , ) is a rallying, rally competition in the Finnish Lakeland in Central Finland. The rally is driven on wide an ...
, after finishing ninth. He equaled his best result of the season with sixth in
Rallye Deutschland
The ADAC Rallye Deutschland is a Rallying, rally event held in Germany. The event was first held in 1982 and originally hosted by e.g. Frankfurt, Mainz and Koblenz. In 2000, the rally was relocated to the region around Trier. Previously part of ...
, his seventh consecutive points finish and sixth consecutive points finish of the season. After the good form, the season ended in three retirements in the last three rallies. Räikkönen scored 34 points during the season, nine more than in 2010. Despite the increased number of points, he would again finish 10th in the championship.
NASCAR
It was reported on 29 March 2011 that Räikkönen would try his hand at
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
starting in the
Truck Series in the summer of 2011 with an eye on also running in the
Nationwide and
Sprint Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States.
The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, ...
. On 2 April Räikkönen signed a deal with Toyota team
Kyle Busch Motorsports to run a limited schedule in the Truck Series.
On 20 May, Räikkönen debuted at the
North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...
with a strong finish of 15th, though he started the day with tough practice sessions and qualified only at 31 out of 37 trucks. His race craft was well received by team crew chief Rick Ren and his teammate
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...
. Räikkönen went on to race in the Nationwide Series at the same track on 28 May driving for
Joe Nemechek
Joseph Frank Nemechek III (born September 26, 1963) is an American professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. Nemechek has made the second mos ...
and
NEMCO Motorsports. He finished 27th after having debris stuck on the grille of his car and getting a penalty for speeding in the pitlane. Later in the month, Räikkönen tested
Robby Gordon
Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American semi-retired auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, Championship Auto Racing Teams, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA, Inter ...
's car at
Infineon Raceway
Sonoma Raceway (originally known as Sears Point Raceway, Golden State International Raceway and Infineon Technologies, Infineon Raceway) is a road course and dragstrip located at Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains of Sonoma County, Cal ...
, with plans of Gordon fielding a two-car team for him and Räikkönen at the
Toyota/Save Mart 350
The Toyota/Save Mart 350 is a stock car racing event in the NASCAR Cup Series that has been held annually at Sonoma Raceway at Sears Point in Sonoma, California since 1989. The race has been known as the Toyota/Save Mart 350 since 2007.
The r ...
. However, Räikkönen crashed the car in the test, and the deal with
Robby Gordon Motorsports fell through.
In May 2022,
Trackhouse Racing announced that Räikkönen would make his Cup Series debut in the No. 91 Chevrolet at the
2022 Go Bowling at The Glen at
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track in the Northeastern United States, northeastern United States, located in Dix, New York, just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, Watkins Glen, at the ...
. Having previously only driven the car in an acclimatisation test at
Virginia International Raceway
Virginia International Raceway (VIR) is a race track located in Alton, Virginia, near Danville. It is less than a half-mile from the North Carolina/Virginia border just outside Milton, North Carolina, on the banks of the Dan River. VIR hosts ...
and one 20-minute practice session, Räikkönen qualified 27th out of 39 cars, notably ahead of fellow debutant
Mike Rockenfeller and former Formula One driver
Daniil Kvyat.
In the race, he ran in the top ten at one point,
but was classified 37th after being crashed out of 25th place following contact from
Loris Hezemans trying to find a way past a spinning
Austin Dillon.
In March 2023, Räikkönen returned to the No. 91 at the
Circuit of the Americas
Circuit of the Americas (COTA) is a Grade 1 Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FIA-specification motor racing track and facilities located in Austin, Texas, United States. The facility is home to the Formula One United States Grand Pr ...
, where he qualified 22nd and ran in the mid-pack for most of the race, before a pit stop just before a caution period resulted in him rising to fourth place with nine laps remaining. A chaotic end to the race with multiple restarts and incidents saw him ultimately finish 29th.
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
Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
, Italy. On 16 May 2017, Räikkönen became a father for the second time with the birth of his daughter. Räikkönen's third child, another daughter, was born in June 2023. In 2023, the family moved from Switzerland to
Como
Como (, ; , or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Nestled at the southwestern branch of the picturesque Lake Como, the city is a renowned tourist destination, ce ...
, Italy.
Räikkönen's hobbies include
snowboarding
Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympic Games and Winter Paralym ...
and
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
. He has also competed in several different kinds of motorsport events. In March 2007, while his Formula One rivals were in Australia preparing for the season opener, Räikkönen competed in a
snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow.
Their engines normally ...
race in Finland under the pseudonym "
James Hunt
James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 – 15 June 1993) was a British racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Shunt", Hunt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with McLaren, and wo ...
", referring to the 1976 world champion whose "playboy" lifestyle has been compared with Räikkönen's own. Räikkönen won the Enduro Sprint race by over 20 seconds with his
Lynx
A lynx ( ; : lynx or lynxes) is any of the four wikt:extant, extant species (the Canada lynx, Iberian lynx, Eurasian lynx and the bobcat) within the medium-sized wild Felidae, cat genus ''Lynx''. The name originated in Middle Engl ...
. Later in the year, he and two friends entered a powerboat race in the Finnish harbour city of
Hanko while wearing
gorilla suits. Again, he raced under the name "James Hunt". They then won a prize for the best-dressed crew.
In August 2008, it was announced that Räikkönen would appear on a set of Finnish postage stamps. The stamps, which were released to commemorate the
Finnish postal service's 370th anniversary, feature images of him racing and on the podium, with the words "F1 World Champion '07 Kimi Räikkönen". ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine listed Räikkönen 36th in their 2008 "Celebrity 100" as the 26th highest paid celebrity and fifth highest paid sportsman.
The same list in 2009 recorded him as the second highest-paid athlete.
In 2011, Räikkönen founded his own
Motocross World Championship
The FIM Motocross World Championship is the premier championship of motocross racing, organized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), divided into two distinct classes: MXGP and MX2. Race duration is 30 minutes plus two laps ...
team,
Ice 1 Racing. The team consists of MX1 rider Toni Eriksson and MX2 rider Ludde Söderberg and is managed by seven-time enduro world champion
Kari Tiainen. The Ice 1 Racing team also supports six junior riders competing in the Finnish national championship.
In 2018, Ferrari filed legal action on behalf of Räikkönen with Canadian authorities. The complaint claimed Räikkönen was being extorted by a woman demanding compensation and threatening to publicly accuse him of
sexual misconduct
Sexual misconduct is misconduct of a sexual nature which exists on a spectrum that may include a broad range of sexual behaviors considered unwelcome. This includes conduct considered inappropriate on an individual or societal basis of morality, ...
at a function after the
2016 Canadian Grand Prix.
Räikkönen stated in 2007 that he believes in God. He has claimed his favorite movie to be ''
Scarface''. Räikkönen is also recognized for having a distinctive voice. Räikkönen has said that the reason behind it is a bicycle accident that he suffered when he was 5 years old. Räikkönen fell, hit his neck on the bicycle handlebar, and injured his
vocal cords
In humans, the vocal cords, also known as vocal folds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through Speech, vocalization. The length of the vocal cords affects the pitch of voice, similar to a violin string. Open when brea ...
, which never fully healed. Sebastian Vettel and Antonio Giovinazzi, his teammates from Ferrari and Alfa Romeo, are two of his close friends.
Public persona and reaction
Räikkönen is known for his dislike of giving media interviews, and frequently answers questions in a blunt and monosyllabic manner. In the build-up to the
2006 Brazilian Grand Prix, when then-
ITV pundit
Martin Brundle
Martin John Brundle (born 1 June 1959) is a British former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster who competed in Formula One from to . In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Brundle won the World Sportscar Champions ...
asked Räikkönen why he missed a ceremony in which footballer
Pelé
Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; 23 October 1940 – 29 December 2022), better known by his nickname Pelé (), was a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Widely reg ...
presented Michael Schumacher with a lifetime achievement award, Räikkönen replied "I was having a shit".
During his early years at McLaren, Ron Dennis gave him the nickname, "The Iceman (nickname), Iceman", with several layers of meaning; apart from its association with the cold climate of Finland, he is widely considered to have a cool temperament under pressure and also an 'icy' persona with most other drivers, team members and the media. He has said that he is "not here to try to please people. I'm here to do my best".
Apart from his on-track driving, off-track instances demonstrating this calm demeanour include being asleep 30 minutes before his first Formula One race
and eating an ice cream during the temporarily-suspended 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix.
Known to be frustrated by anything that prevents him from simply racing, he is relatively outspoken in his criticism of politics and off-circuit drama in sport. In a rare feature interview in the middle of the 2013 season, Räikkönen said "sometimes in Formula 1 there is politics, and the shit there is stupid".
In the same article, Lotus team principal
Éric Boullier described Räikkönen as someone "doing pretty much whatever he wants".
During the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix, his McLaren MP4-21 broke down as the heat shield had exploded and he was forced to retire; he went from his car straight to his nearby yacht, fully dressed in his racing suit and immediately relaxed in his Hot tub, jacuzzi.
Räikkönen's terse radio communications have sometimes attracted comment. On the 20th lap of the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Räikkönen had just taken the lead from Lewis Hamilton and his race engineer Simon Rennie advised that Fernando Alonso was five seconds behind and that he would be kept informed of Alonso's pace; Räikkönen replied, "Just leave me alone, I know what to do!". Later in the same race, he admonished his team again, when being told to manage the tyre temperature: "Yes, yes, yes, yes, I'm doing that all the time. You don't have to remind me every ten seconds!". The first quote attracted significant press coverage, and Räikkönen made no attempt to apologise in the post-race interview. It was earlier reported that he printed 500 T-shirts with the quote for the entire Lotus team, but this was later denied by Räikkönen in an interview with Formula One Group media personnel.
The quote was featured on his official website.
Helmet

Räikkönen's helmet, designed by UffeDesigns, manufactured by Arai Helmet, Arai (2001–2006, 2012), Bell Sports, Bell (2013, 2015–2021), and Schuberth (2007–2009, 2014), slightly changed during the years. His helmet has also always featured a V design running on the circle top (representing a flying bird) and the inscription "Iceman". The trident insignia was painted in white during his time racing for Sauber and McLaren until 2005, and red from 2006 with McLaren and during his time with Ferrari.
Initially his helmet was predominantly blue with white and silver details, but its colours and detailing changed over time. When racing for Ferrari Räikkönen's helmet changed radically: it was white with the middle part black and red with tribal designs. He retained this design in some rallies, although the helmet style was significantly different for this discipline. In WRC and NASCAR he used a blue Stilo helmet with Red Bull's logo, silver and white accents (to resemble Red Bull's can design and Räikkönen's Sauber helmet lines). Upon his return to Formula One, he sported a black helmet with white and red diagonals. For the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco Grand Prix, he wore a replica of the 1976
James Hunt
James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 – 15 June 1993) was a British racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Shunt", Hunt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with McLaren, and wo ...
helmet. Upon his return to Ferrari in 2014, the base colour became a vibrant red, with white diagonal lines crossing from each side. In 2015, his helmet reverted to a white base. As of 2014, Räikkönen continued to race with a Bell model rather than Ferrari's official supplier Schuberth.
Other ventures
In 2022, after his retirement from Formula One, Räikkönen was named the team principal of the Kawasaki Racing Team for the 2022 FIM Motocross World Championship, 2022 season of the
Motocross World Championship
The FIM Motocross World Championship is the premier championship of motocross racing, organized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), divided into two distinct classes: MXGP and MX2. Race duration is 30 minutes plus two laps ...
.
Karting record
Karting career summary
Racing record
Racing career summary
Complete Formula Renault 2.0 UK results
(Template:F1 driver results legend 2, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
Complete Formula One results
(Template:F1 driver results legend 2, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
† Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.
Complete WRC results
NASCAR
(Template:NASCAR driver results legend, key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Cup Series
Nationwide Series
Camping World Truck Series
Ineligible for series points.
Formula One records
Räikkönen holds the following List of Formula One driver records, Formula One records:
Footnotes
Formula One achievements
* The 2007 Chinese Grand Prix saw Räikkönen give
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
''as a manufacturer'' their 200th win, as well as their 600th podium.
* The 2008 French Grand Prix saw Räikkönen give Ferrari ''as a manufacturer'' their 200th pole position.
* The 2016 Russian Grand Prix saw Räikkönen give Ferrari ''as a manufacturer'' their 700th podium.
* Räikkönen is the only driver to win in the V10, V8 and the V6 turbo hybrid engine eras.
* Räikkönen is the second driver to win the World Championship after being third in the drivers standings before the final race.
* Räikkönen is the third Ferrari driver to win the World Championship in their first year with the team, after Juan Manuel Fangio and Jody Scheckter.
* Räikkönen is the third Finnish driver to win the World Championship, after Keke Rosberg and
Mika Häkkinen.
* Räikkönen is the only driver to win a Grand Prix for Lotus F1.
* , Räikkönen is the latest Ferrari driver to win the World Championship.
* , Räikkönen holds the record for the most wins (6) in a debut year with Ferrari.
See also
* The "Flying Finns"
* ''The Unknown Kimi Raikkonen''
Notes and references
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
*
Formula One DataBase: Kimi Räikkönen*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raikkonen, Kimi
1979 births
Living people
Alfa Romeo Formula One drivers
British Formula Renault 2.0 drivers
Ferrari Formula One drivers
Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Germany
Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Japan
Finnish expatriates in Italy
Finnish expatriates in Monaco
Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Finnish expatriate sportspeople in the United Kingdom
Finnish Formula One drivers
Finnish racing drivers
Finnish rally drivers
Formula Ford drivers
Formula One race winners
Formula One World Drivers' Champions
Formula Renault Eurocup drivers
Karting World Championship drivers
Lotus F1 Formula One drivers
McLaren Formula One drivers
Motorcycle racing team owners
NASCAR drivers
Sauber Formula One drivers
Sportspeople from Espoo
Racing drivers from Uusimaa
World Rally Championship drivers
Manor Motorsport drivers
Haywood Racing drivers
Citroën Racing drivers
Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers
21st-century Finnish sportsmen