Kimi Raikkonen (Race Car Driver) – Overview, Biography

Name:Kimi Raikkonen
Occupation: Race Car Driver
Gender:Male
Birth Day: October 17,
1979
Age: 41
Birth Place: Espoo,
Finland
Zodiac Sign:Libra

Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen was born on October 17, 1979 in Espoo, Finland (41 years old). Kimi Raikkonen is a Race Car Driver, zodiac sign: Libra. Nationality: Finland. Approx. Net Worth: $250 Million. With the net worth of $250 Million, Kimi Raikkonen is the #1702 richest person on earth all the time in our database.

Trivia

He has won 19 races and made 69 podium appearances in his career.

Net Worth 2020

$250 Million
Find out more about Kimi Raikkonen net worth here.

Physique

HeightWeightHair ColourEye ColourBlood TypeTattoo(s)
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Before Fame

He began racing go-karts at age ten.

Biography

Biography Timeline

1989

Räikkönen started the season in Australia by taking pole position, setting the fastest lap, and becoming the first driver since Nigel Mansell in 1989 to win his first Grand Prix with Ferrari.

1994

Räikkönen won the United States Grand Prix, becoming, at 39, F1’s oldest race winner since Nigel Mansell in 1994, and the 13th oldest F1 race winner ever. It was his first win since the 2013 Australian Grand Prix 2,044 days earlier, his first win for Ferrari since he returned to the team back in 2014, his first win for Ferrari since the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix 3,339 days and 140 races earlier, and his first win in the hybrid era. 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 with an electrical issue, but nonetheless, despite four retirements that were not caused by him, he finished third in the Drivers’ Championship in his final season with Ferrari.

1998

Räikkönen was born in Espoo, Finland. He had a long line of success in karting from the age of 10. His first race outside Finland was in Monaco 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 1st in the Nordic Championship at Varna in Norway. In 1999, Räikkönen placed second in 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.

2000

On the basis of these results, Peter Sauber gave the Finn a test with the Sauber Formula One team in September 2000 at the Mugello Circuit. 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, Sauber signed Räikkönen for the 2001 season. However, some critics (including FIA president Max Mosley) voiced concerns over granting an F1 Super Licence 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 (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.

2002

Räikkönen scored a third-place podium finish in his first race with McLaren, 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. Räikkönen came close to winning his first Grand Prix in France 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’s Toyota on the circuit. 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.

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, Italy. On 16 May 2017, Räikkönen became a father for the second time with the birth of his daughter.

Räikkönen’s helmet, designed by UffeDesigns, manufactured by Arai (2001–2006, 2012), Bell (2013, 2015–2020) and Schuberth (2007–2009, 2014), slightly changed during the years. 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. His helmet has also always featured a V design running on the circle top (representing a flying bird) and the inscription “Iceman”. In his debut race, his helmet was predominantly blue with white and silver details. When he joined McLaren in 2002 the design was left intact, only making the top circle all blue (rather than blue and silver) and with some black details on the chin area. In 2003–2005 his helmet was blue and white with some red and silver parts, red details were added on the symbol that was added to the M design. In 2006 his helmet was the same, only changing the blue to black with red and white lines on it. When racing for Ferrari Räikkönen’s helmet changed radically: it was white with the middle part black and red with tribal designs and a black circle with the design in the top. In 2008, black paisley motifs were added in the chin. He retained this design in some rallies, although the helmet style was significantly different for this discipline.

2004

The 2004 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, Räikkönen made 5 pit-stops but was classified fifth since the Williams-BMWs and the two Toyotas were disqualified. At the United States Grand Prix, Räikkönen finished sixth.

2005

Despite the disappointment of the 2004 season, Räikkönen was still seen as one of the rising stars of the sport, along with BAR’s Button, Renault’s Alonso and 2005 McLaren teammate Montoya. 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 in 2005.

Räikkönen then achieved three consecutive poles in San Marino, Spain, and a win after a safety car strategy call by Neil Martin at Monaco. 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 European Grand Prix, Räikkönen flat-spotted his right front tyre while lapping Jacques Villeneuve. The resultant vibrations caused his suspension to fail while he led on the final lap, sending him into the tyre wall and handing a further ten points to his rival Alonso. Changing a tyre would have given him a relatively safe third place. However, tyre changes were only allowed in 2005 in cases where a “punctured or damaged tyre” could be changed for “clear and genuine safety reasons” and there was no precedent for whether the stewards would consider a flat-spotted tyre dangerous enough. This incident, in part, resulted in a rules clarification allowing teams to change a flat-spotted tyre without punishment.

2006

In Germany, 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. On all three occasions, it was championship rival Alonso who took advantage to win. Significantly, at the opening of the Hungarian Grand Prix, 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 told a news conference, “We need to work in a better way just to make sure that the car is very reliable.” However he went on to take the chequered flag with a convincing victory over Michael Schumacher, albeit after McLaren teammate Montoya retired with driveshaft failure while leading.

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, who had been driving for Ferrari since 2006.

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 jacuzzi.

2007

A first turn incident with Scott Speed at the Turkish Grand Prix 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 Italian Grand Prix 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.

At the Fuji Speedway in Japan, 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, 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 for second.

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, Robert Kubica 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 against 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 2019 Formula One season, Räikkönen’s 2007 title triumph remains the most recent World Drivers Championship win for a Scuderia Ferrari driver.

Räikkönen’s hobbies include snowboarding and ice hockey. 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 race in Finland under the pseudonym “James Hunt”, 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. 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.

2008

At the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, 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 1986.

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.

At the start of the 2009 season in the Australian Grand Prix, 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 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”.

2009

At the Belgian Grand Prix, he qualified sixth, jumping to second at the start of the race. After the safety car was removed, he passed Giancarlo Fisichella 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”.

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 team in 2011. 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. 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:

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. 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 for the 2010 season as a full-time driver for the Citroën Junior Team, and that he would be driving a Red Bull-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.

2010

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 2010. 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 and Nico Rosberg. Toyota F1, before it pulled out of Formula One, offered Räikkönen a driving contract to replace Timo Glock in 2010. The BBC 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 3 April 2010, Räikkönen scored his first WRC points when he finished eighth in the Jordan Rally. Consequently, he became the second driver after Carlos Reutemann 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 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, 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, 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 returned in the Acropolis Rally, finishing seventh. He would score points in his home rally, Rally Finland, after finishing ninth. He equaled his best result of the season with sixth in Rallye Deutschland, 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.

2011

It was reported on 29 March 2011 that Räikkönen would try his hand at NASCAR starting in the Camping World Truck Series sometime in the summer of 2011 with an eye on also running in the Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series. On 2 April Räikkönen signed a deal with Toyota team Kyle Busch Motorsports to run a limited schedule in the Truck Series. An earlier report claimed that Räikkönen’s entry was related with former Richard Petty Motorsports executive Foster Gillett, whom Räikkönen announced would be a partner in his Ice 1 Racing team.

In the week before the 2011 Singapore Grand Prix, several news sources reported that Räikkönen was eyeing a return to Formula One for 2012 with Williams, after he was spotted at the team’s headquarters in Grove, Oxfordshire. Several reports went so far as to suggest that Räikkönen had entered preliminary negotiations with the team. However, the team refused to comment on the reports, with driver Rubens Barrichello dismissing them as rumour and speculation. On 29 November 2011, it was announced that Räikkönen would be returning to Formula 1 in 2012, signing a two-year contract with Lotus.

In 2011, Räikkönen founded his own Motocross World Championship 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.

2012

After a five-week long summer break, the much speculated introduction of a ‘Drag Reduction Device’ by Lotus F1 team has been delayed due to bad weather conditions on Friday for the Belgian Grand Prix. That did not stop Räikkönen from qualifying fourth. He went on to finish third behind Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel. A week later at Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Räikkönen qualified seventh and finished the race in fifth. At the Singapore Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified 12th as his Lotus E20 could not match the pace of the top 3 teams and eventually finished sixth. At the Japanese Grand Prix, 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 Korean Grand Prix 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 Sebastian Vettel after 16 rounds of the 2012 season, Räikkönen said he takes inspiration from the 2007 season which he won at the last round in Brazilian Grand Prix after Lewis Hamilton suffered gearbox problems. At the Indian Grand Prix, 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 2013 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 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 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 Fernando 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. Still third, Räikkönen was 16 points clear of Lewis 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 and a Marussia. 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 Fernando Alonso and 74 points behind champion Sebastian 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. In second place was Fernando Alonso.

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.

At the Chinese Grand Prix, 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 for position. In the Bahrain Grand Prix 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. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen started fourth and finished second thanks to a three-stop strategy. At the next race in Monaco, 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 to gain tenth place. In the process, it continued his streak of 23 consecutive points finishes, one shy of the record of 24 set by Michael Schumacher across three seasons between 2001 and 2003.

2013

On 17 March 2013 he won the first race of the season, the Australian Grand Prix 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, but was demoted three places for impeding Nico Rosberg during qualifying. He finished the race seventh, behind team-mate Grosjean, after damaging his car at the start.

With his Lotus struggling during the Canadian Grand Prix, Räikkönen finished ninth. On 30 June 2013 at the British Grand Prix, 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 German Grand Prix, Räikkönen qualified fourth and finished second, only a second behind Vettel with the help of the safety car. Räikkönen struggled in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix, 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.

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 2007), starting from 2014. He revealed that it was for monetary reasons that he left Lotus.

In 2013, the helmet was similar to the previous season, but with the inverted colours (except for the red), the horn design in the upper front became red and on the sides there was a big red number 7 superimposed on the black section of the helmet. Unlike the 2012 model, the 2013 model is manufactured by Bell.

2014

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, 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.”

Upon his return to Ferrari in 2014, the base colour became a vibrant red, with white diagonal lines crossing from each side. A large number 7 was placed within the red, similar to that of 2013’s. The “Iceman” inscription at the rear of the helmet was yellow, along with some of detailing around the top of the helmet. The manufacturer of his helmet for the 2014 season was officially Schuberth, yet it is believed that he continued using a Bell model for racing purposes.

2015

In 2015, his helmet reverted to a white base, similar to the model he used back in 2007. The rear of the helmet reverted to black, with a red band above the “Iceman” inscription. The Insignia along the top was surrounded by red and grey detailing, and the large number 7 was bordered in grey. As with 2014, Räikkönen continued to race with a Bell model rather than Ferrari’s official supplier Schuberth.

2017

Räikkönen renewed his contract with Ferrari for the 2018 season on 22 August 2017. He qualified second for the first race in Australia and finished third, after being jumped by Vettel during the virtual safety car period. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, 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.

2018

On 11 September 2018, it was announced that Räikkönen would leave Ferrari at the end of the season to rejoin Sauber on a two-year contract, the team he made his Formula One debut with in 2001. Räikkönen made his Sauber return in the postseason Abu Dhabi Pirelli tyre test driving their 2018 car. The Sauber team was renamed Alfa Romeo Racing prior to the start of the 2019 season.

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 at a function after the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix.

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 at the start of the season, and the team was left fighting at the back of the grid against Haas and Williams. Across the first five races Räikkönen qualified 20th and last twice, at the Hungarian Grand Prix and 70th Anniversary Grand Prix, and finished last of all classified finishers at the British Grand Prix. After a best finish of 11th in the first five races, the sixth round of the season in Spain saw Räikkönen qualify 14th, the first time in 2020 that Alfa Romeo made it into the second part of qualifying. At the Belgian Grand Prix, he finished ahead of both Ferrari cars in 12th. The Italian Grand Prix saw Räikkönen run as high as second after a safety car and a red flag, however the car did not have enough pace to hold the position and he eventually finished 13th.

The Tuscan Grand Prix saw numerous accidents and was stopped twice due to red flags. Räikkönen started the final restart from 11th and was able to climb up to finish eighth ahead of the two Ferraris, but was dropped to ninth due to a five-second time penalty added to his time for crossing the pit-entry line, still claiming his first points finish of the season. Räikkönen qualified in 20th and last place for the third time in 2020 at the Russian Grand Prix, following a mistake in the first part of qualifying, and went on to finish 14th in the race. At the Portuguese Grand Prix, Räikkönen made his 324th race start, breaking the record set by Rubens Barrichello at his retirement in 2011 and held by him since 2008.

🎂 Upcoming Birthday

Currently, Kimi Raikkonen is 41 years, 9 months and 18 days old. Kimi Raikkonen will celebrate 42nd birthday on a Sunday 17th of October 2021.

Find out about Kimi Raikkonen birthday activities in timeline view here.

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