Nationwide-race barbequed Kimi's driving pleasure

Kimi Räikkönen's feelings in his debut-races World Camping Truck- and Nationwide -classes were completely different. He enjoyed fully the Truck-race whereas the Nationwide-stunt mainly brought him pain, sweat and a disappointment in driving pleasure.

– The race started well and Kimi was driving towards a TOP-15 during the first 40 laps. After that the setbacks began and the joy of driving stopped immediately, Todd Hirschfield who conveys Kimi's feelings from the American tour, reported to Turun Sanomat after the race.

– Kimi showed his speed. It speaks for itself when you look at who he had already left behind him when his car worked the way he wanted.

The weather in North-Carolina was considerably hotter than a week ago. There were also problems in heat isolation. The driver who climbed out of Toyota Camry looked like a racer who was remarkably worn out.

– It was incredibly hot in the cockpit. That's why the race felt more longer than it was in reality. The floor burned my sneakers and my soles, Räikkönen sighed.

Räikkönen started from 22nd position and finished in 27th position 4 laps behind. The Truck-race went the other way around when Räikkönen started from 31st position and climbed up to 15th in the race, driving on the same lap as the winner.

– The goal was the same in both races - to drive all laps and finish at the same lap with the top. It was a completely realistic goal but succeeded only in the first race. Kimi drove really well all the time, team manager Rick Ren praised.

Räikkönen proved once again that he can quickly learn a new car and the style of a new racing class and could already in Saturday's race take advantage of the re-starts improving his position all the time.

– It was cool at first when I could overtake and it felt good when the car turned decently. Then everything just went wrong. I couldn't control the car. I couldn't turn it anymore and felt that I had to stop in corners when it was ramming so badly all the time.

– I had the same problem in practice already. We got it better but in the race the problems came back. It's nasty to experience something like that because the car felt so good at times. I even hit the wall a few times because the car didn't turn. I got hits from behind and almost spun. When it gets that tricky you just can't race. You only try to make it through the corners and don't enjoy it one bit, Räikkönen reported.

When pitting around lap 139 Räikkönen moved on too fast and got a penalty for speeding. After that he was 2 laps behind the lead.

On track he got more troubles. A front piece from some car had fallen off and it got stuck on the bottom of Räikkönen's Toyota and after that turning the car became almost impossible.

– I had no grip in the front anymore. Some junk got stuck on the bottom of the car and it didn't come loose until it was pulled off in the pit, Räikkönen cleared.

The rest of the race Räikkönen used mainly to get experience.

Matt Kenseth won before Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. It was Kenseth's 26th victory in Nationwide -class.

Räikkönen left for Europe on Saturday-night. His plans of continuing in Nascar are now pending.

– Kimi sits down to think what he wants. I hope that these races lit the spark to drive more Nascar-races in the future. I am extremely pleased with his performances. Kimi showed very quickly that he can drive in the same speed as the experienced men in these classes, Hirschfeld says.

If Räikkönen finds himself a competitive car to Sprint Cup -races to so called normal tracks like Sonoma and also Watkins Glen, then it will most definitely decide Räikkönen's will to continue.

Juan Pablo Montoya snatched his first Sprint Cup -victory in Sonoma 2007 and his second one in Watkins Glen 2010.

Turun Sanomat

HEIKKI KULTA

Results

300 laps/200 miles:

1. Matt Kenseth Ford
2. Carl Edwards Ford
3. Kyle Busch Toyota
4. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Ford
5. Reed Sorenson Chevrolet
6. Brad Keselowski Dodge
7. Steve Wallace Toyota
8. Brian Scott Toyota
9. Aric Almirola Chevrolet
10. Elliott Sadler Chevrolet
11. Joey Logano Toyota
12. Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge
13. Justin Allgaier Chevrolet
14. Michael Annett Toyota
15. Cole Whitt Toyota
27. Kimi Räikkönen Toyota
28. Eric McClure Chevrolet
29. Joe Nemechek Chevrolet
30. Derrike Cope Dodge

Courtey: Nicole

Busch hopes that Räikkönen finishes the race

Kyle Busch didn't admit that he expected more from Kimi Räikkönen in Charlotte's Truck-practice, but the team owner didn't look very pleased after he had a meeting with the Finnish driver when the second practice session had ended.

– Kimi made a big impression on tests in Gresham and Rockingham. He drove really well. Now we had to get him on a racing track and it didn't help at all that we use different tyres than we used during the last couple of times, Busch said to Turun Sanomat.

What does Busch expect from Räikkönen in Friday night's race?

– That he drives all laps, Busch said.

Räikkönen himself didn't hide that the practice laps didn't go the way he wished. Actually only the last lap went well when the team got something right in the car.

– Hopefully the qualification and race goes better. One has to know where to put the car on this track in order to find the best driving lines. That knowledge comes only after laps and experience.

– There wasn't as much traffic as I expected. So I didn't get to learn that either. The car didn't behave the way I wanted, Räikkönen complained.

Turun Sanomat, Charlotte

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole

Webber: Looking good for the race

Mark Webber: We spoke before qualifying and decided that, as tomorrow is going to be a long race, every lap you could save today might help tomorrow. It turns out that we're in the best possible grid positions and the team did a good job, as we have saved a set of tyres too, so it's looking good

Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber is feeling confident ahead of tomorrow's F1 2011 Turkish Grand Prix.

Webber will start the fourth round of the season from second on the grid and while the Aussie was disappointed to again lose out to his team-mate, Sebastian Vettel, having been four tenths slower, he reckons the team's decision to only opt for one-run in Q3 will pay dividends in the race.

“I would have liked to have got a couple more tenths to have the margin. But obviously Sebastian did a very good lap for pole, but my lap wasn't too bad either,” Webber reflected.

“We spoke before qualifying and decided that, as tomorrow is going to be a long race, every lap you could save today might help tomorrow. It turns out that we're in the best possible grid positions and the team did a good job, as we have saved a set of tyres too, so it's looking good.

“There were some good decisions from the team. I'm happy with today and am looking forward to tomorrow's race.”

Red Bull Racing team boss, Christian Horner meanwhile was delighted to see his two men lock-out the front row, the first time the squad has managed that this year.

He also added that while it was a bit of a risk not to do two-runs in the shoot-out, the gamble did pay off.

“A great team performance,” he continued. “We elected not to do a second run with both drivers; we knew it would be a little tight, but strategically we believe it was the right thing to do, as both drivers now have a new set of tyres available for tomorrow's race.”

Source: Crash.net

Hamilton: Not pole but better than nothing

Lewis Hamilton is adamant he's "in the fight" for the Turkish GP victory after qualifying in fourth place for Sunday's race

The McLaren driver, the winner of the last grand prix in China, was one of the favourites to at least secure a spot on the front row of the Istanbul grid.

However, he had no answer to the pace of the Red Bulls while Nico Rosberg also put his resurgent Mercedes GP ahead of the McLaren driver.

"It's not pole position but it's better than nothing," Hamilton told the BBC.

"We're starting on the dirty side, but we're in the fight.

"We're not far away but now you see the Mercedes have picked up their pace and also the Ferraris have.

"I'm looking forward to a strong race. It's a long one here but there are chances to overtake and it should be good."

The one thing, though, that Hamilton doesn't have which aided his climb to the top step of the podium in China is an extra set of the softer option tyres.

And that, he admits, could cost him this Sunday.

"We don't have an extra set, we went out, whether that was right or not I don't know."

Source: Planet-F1

Video: 2011 Formula 1 UBS Chinese Grand Prix Race Edit

Source: LewisWDC11

Alonso 'confident' of better race-pace

Fernando Alonso is adamant Ferrari will fare better in Sunday's grand prix than during qualifying in China

The Spaniard claimed his third P5 in qualifying on Saturday afternoon, once again failing to challenge Sebastian Vettel and the two McLarens.

However, this time round, he was also beaten by Mercedes GP driver Nico Rosberg.

But despite his Ferrari being only the fourth best car in qualifying, Alonso believes he will be stronger in Sunday's race.

"We are more confident over the race pace than qualy," Alonso told Autosport. "We saw in the first two races.

"On Saturday we struggle a little bit more, so I expect tomorrow we'll have a little bit more of a competitive car and starting fifth anything can happen.

"The podium is still the target for us, the dream for us. If we can do it, okay, and if not fourth will be okay, if not fifth will be okay."

As for the Scuderia's performance in qualifying, which saw Felipe Massa claim sixth place behind his team-mate, the double World Champion said: "I think we did okay.

"Fifth and sixth at the moment is the maximum we can do with what we have in our hands. We delivered today what we are supposed to deliver.

"We already knew all about Red Bull and McLaren, but here we saw an improvement from Mercedes, so the situation is even more difficult.

"The main thing for us is to improve the car and the expectation for tomorrow is to have a clean race with no problems at the start, no problems in the pit stop, choosing a good strategy and scoring as many points as possible. "We need the points."

Source: Planet-F1

Video: F1 2011 Australian GP - Official race edit

Source: F1ARAB

NASCAR - Kimi Räikkönen will pay $ 100,000 per race

Kimi Räikkönen is finalizing an agreement with the team of Kyle Busch in the NASCAR Truck Series driving a Toyota Tundra. A deal to be finalized in the coming days.

The agreement will include between three and five races this year. Three races and two races farms optional depending on the results of the 2007 F1 world champion. Räikkönen then begin his career in Charlotte.

Note that Räikkönen arrives in paying his wheel. Without Kyle Bush knows exactly where the money comes. "My contract with Kimi is personal, for the budget, yes he has money behind him, but I do not know where that money comes from. " Kyle Bush launches U.S. media.

Kimi Räikkönen will pay approximately between 300,000 and 500,000 dollars in total, $ 100,000 race

Source: TomorrowNewsF1
Courtesy: _TaniaS_

Kimi Räikkönen approved to race Trucks at Charlotte

Former Formula One champion Kimi Räikkönen has tendered his driver application and resume to NASCAR, the sanctioning body confirmed Wednesday.

Räikkönen has sought and received approval to compete in the May 20 NC Education Lottery 200 Camping World Truck Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, according to NASCAR spokesperson Kerry Tharp.

Beyond that, Räikkönen’s plans have not been announced. A newspaper in his native Finland cited Raikonnen as saying he intends to bring his ICE-1 Racing team to NASCAR competition with former RPM boss Foster Gillett as one of his financial partners.

Source: SportingNews

Lewis Hamilton to take 13,000-mile detour to watch brother Nicolas make race debut ahead of Malaysian GP

But the McLaren driver insists it will not affect his preparation for the Malaysian Grand Prix a week on Sunday, where he will attempt to reel in Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.

Hamilton finished second to the world champion at the season opener in Australia on Sunday, an unexpected result given McLaren's dismal pre-season form.

As he prepared to fly to Kuala Lumpur on Monday to begin training for the sweat-fest in Sepang he reflected on that stunning turnaround, claiming that he was mentally and physically in the best shape he has ever been.

“Things are pretty good,” Hamilton said. “And they can only get better. Finally I’ve got something I can fight with, something I can take the fight to the Bulls with.”

This time last year Hamilton was under a cloud after he and his father Anthony decided to go their separate ways following nearly 20 years together as driver-manager.

Twelve months later he was buzzing after the pair shared a hug on the grid in Melbourne, a symbolic step in their blossoming relationship.

“This weekend was the best feeling I have ever had with my dad being here just as my dad,” he said.

“The support I had — he has always given me immense support, but I think it was support mixed with some stress of ‘I don’t want to let you down’. But this time it was just ‘I’m so proud to see you out there’, and it just felt fantastic. Really, really great.

” Hamilton flies back to the UK this weekend to watch 19-year-old Nicolas, who suffers from cerebral palsy, take part in his first race at Brands Hatch, where he makes his debut in the Renault Clio Cup, before returning to Kuala Lumpur.

“I am the closest person to him, but even I cannot comprehend what it must have been like to have the difficulties he has had,” Hamilton said. “I’m so proud of him.

"I’ll just head back to see his qualifying and race and then pop back out. It’s cool. I’ll get to watch lots of movies on the plane. Physically, this is the best I’ve ever felt by a long way.”

Source: The Telegraph

Ecclestone not in New York for F1 race talks

"Nothing planned"

Bernie Ecclestone has not travelled to New York this week to discuss a possible formula one race on Staten Island, it has emerged.

Explaining that the F1 chief executive had broken his earlier plans to attend the Melbourne season opener, race boss Ron Walker said Ecclestone had instead accepted the invitation of New York mayor Michael Bloomberg.

But a New York City Hall official told the Herald Sun that there is "Nothing planned" between the 80-year-old and Bloomberg.

And when asked about the plans for a Staten Island grand prix, a spokesman for Bloomberg answered: "We don’t have such a plan."

Indeed, Ecclestone has been giving interviews in the last 24 hours from his London office.

Australian Grand Prix Corporation chairman Ron Walker admitted he was confused: "Everybody tells me he is meeting with (New York) city officials but I have no idea what’s in his diary at all.

"It’s none of my business,"

he insisted.

Revealingly, Walker said he was not disappointed Ecclestone had broken his plans to fly to Australia.

"He’s a task master you see. If you were to ask him the future of the race, he could just say ’none’. So these are reasons why I don’t want him here."

Ecclestone confirmed to Reuters the news about him skipping Australia, and when asked if Staten Island is a candidate for a future race, he answered: "No, absolutely 100 per cent."

Source: Nextgen-auto

Massa: "Race simulation went well: no surprises"

There was little chance of Felipe Massa getting bored during his first day of testing at the Catalunya Circuit. After working in the wet in the morning, the Brazilian driver tackled a true race simulation in the afternoon, when the track was finally completely dry. “It was a really busy day, during which we managed to do a lot of kilometres in very different conditions,” explained Felipe, talking to www.ferrari.com.

“It was important to be able to complete a simulation of a Grand Prix, which we did while trying to make the tyres last as long as possible: it’s fair to say that it went off without any real surprises.”

Felipe will be back in the cockpit of the Ferrari F150th Italia tomorrow morning for the start of the final day of testing at this circuit. After that, it will be a case of finding out if the test programme will continue as originally planned, or if there will be changes because of the changing situation in Bahrain.

Source: Ferrari.com

Schumi: Race wins, not the World title

Michael Schumacher concedes that while his Mercedes GP W02 may win a race in 2011, the car is not up to challenging for the World title

The first half of pre-season testing has produced varying form from Merc GP's W02, which is proving to be rather inconsistent.

While the car has shown moments of pace, resulting in Schumi finishing the Jerez test with the week's second fastest lap time, on most days the team has finished outside the top half of the timesheets.

Reliability has also proven to be a bit of a worry, although the bulk of the gremlins have befallen Rosberg.

And with half of pre-season testing already completed, Schumacher fears his W02 is not a Championship-winning car.

"The target is still the same as we said weeks ago: to hopefully be, with this car, on the podium and maybe, if things go very well, to win a race this year," said the 42-year-old

"That's probably the maximum we can talk about, but it is very difficult to judge our performance at the moment against the others because obviously we will improve the car a little bit further to the Bahrain race.

"But, how much compared to the others, that's the question mark."

Source: Planet-F1

Iltasanomat (paper edition): Great race, Kimi

by Janne Aittoniemi

Kimi Räikkönen proved that he has clearly improved as a rally driver.

According to many people Kimi drove his best rally so far in Sweden.

- Oh well, I'm satisfied although I could have gone faster. The beginning was a bit difficult but the driving got better towards the end, Räikkönen said after the race had ended.

Räikkönen was 8th in Sweden and was rewarded with 4 WC-points. Of course he has got better positions in his rallying career. Last season he was 5th in Turkey and 7th in Germany.

However in Sweden there were more talented drivers - and what was most important, Räikkönen closed the gap to the lead and he didn't make any big mistakes.

Räikkönen lost the race to the winner Mikko Hirvonen by 7 minutes but without any problems the difference would have been about 5 and a half minutes. Kimi lost all and all 1,5 minutes without his own fault when he had a tyre puncture and one spin.

- We spun once but otherwise we got through without making bigger mistakes. The puncture doesnt' bug me and neither does anything else either. These things happen, Räikkönen thought.

The new WRC-car suits Räikkönen better than last season's Citroen.

- It's more nice to drive this one. This is smaller and quicker, Kimi said.

Räikkönen got into an especially good speed on Saturday when they drove the morning-stages for the second time. He was on four stages in top 6 in a row and shocked with even driving the 4th fastest time once.

Räikkönen proved us once again that he is more comfortable on high-speed roads instead of on tangling stages. He drove clearly more confident in Sweden than he did a year ago.

- It's cool to see that I have managed to learn at least a little during the year, Räikkönen said.

Courtesy: Nicole

Interview with Marc Gené: I could race with Kimi and Loeb in 2012

Peugeot have unveiled their team for the 24h of Le Mans. It has the same line-up as last season, a line-up where the Spaniard Marc Gené is one of the main stars

What’s different this season in Le Mans?
Unfortunately, the V12 engines have been banned and now we have 150-200 less horsepower. But we have improved the aerodynamics, chassis and ergonomics, so the car has a very similar behavior to a Formula 1. But Audi will also have a new car and, as always, we will have to take them into consideration. We will also have to see where the “gasoline” Aston Martin will be with the new rules. We would like to forget what happened last year. We were the fastest, but you know what happened.

What about the chance of racing with Räikkönen and Loeb?
It is something very logical, and it could happen in 2012. I had already been told, that if Loeb had raced (in 2011) we would have been team-mates, because we have already worked together in the past, and because he’s out of the ordinary. If Kimi also comes, well, I’m the one who knows him the best. As a matter of fact, he has asked me several times about Le Mans and I have told him that this is the most beautiful race in the world. He’s a very fast driver and he would fit perfectly, as Loeb also would, but we will have to wait until he (Loeb) retires from rallying as rumors say.

What does Alonso think about the new Ferrari?
In the racing world, if you do the best time, that’s indicative. It’s easy to see that the new car was well born, it gives good results and it is reliable. I don’t have much more information about that, but I have a good feeling after what we’ve seen in Valencia.

Source: AS.com
Courtesy: Mar

Photos: Kimi Räikkönen's Independence Day: Finland enduro race

Kimi Raikkonen explained enduro debut in style

Source: iltalehti
Courtesy: Verena and Julia

Sebastian Vettel Interview after Race at Korean GP 2010

Source: ririri074

[Photos] Korean GP

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