Ferrari “had all the tools” to win 2017 titles – Raikkonen

2017 Brazilian Grand Prix

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Kimi Raikkonen says it was only “small things” that kept Ferrari from being able to win the championship in 2017.

He admitted he had taken too long to get on top of the set-up of his car early in the season.

“I think we started pretty badly the year,” said Raikkonen in today’s FIA press conference, “we were not really where we should have been.”

“The personal feeling on my side, we were not very happy where the set-up was and it took way too long to figure it out. Since that it’s been better but then we had too many DNFs for many different reasons.”

“But I think as a team we’ve come a long way from year to year and also from last year. We made a good step, obviously not enough as we want because as Ferrari we want to win both championships.”

Mercedes clinched the constructors’ championship two races ago and Lewis Hamilton secured the drivers’ title at the last round. Raikkonen said Ferrari had the potential to push them more closely.

“I think we had all the tools this year, we just need to tidy up things and not make mistakes,” he said. “Not have any issues from any side, not from our side as the drivers or from the team side.”

“It’s small things but I think in the end they made a big part this year who won the championship and which way it went.”

“But I think we have all the people, we have the tools, we have a great car with still two races to go,” he added. “Even if the championships are done we try to do the same work we always do and try to win races.”

Raikkonen lies fifth in the drivers’ championship with two races to go. “I think it’s very simple where we are in the championship that’s how good or bad it’s been,” he said.

“It is how it is this year. We need to learn and make better thing next year. This year for sure in many ways could have been better.”

2017 Brazilian Grand Prix

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    Keith Collantine
    Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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    19 comments on “Ferrari “had all the tools” to win 2017 titles – Raikkonen”

    1. You don’t say?

    2. Why do F1 racing drivers say ‘for sure’ so often?

      1. Old school drivers do it more.

        1. For sure…

      2. Could be fun in the stats pages… see who says “for sure” most frequently in post-race interviews. When Johnny Herbert was racing I used to giggle like a little girl every time he started the answer to an interviewer’s question with “Yeah, no…”

        1. Hehe.

          Maybe more fun if you award drivers points every time they use ‘definitely’ ‘certainly’ or ‘undoubtedly’ then deduct points for using ‘for sure’

      3. “Why do F1 racing drivers say ‘for sure’ so often?” Schumi used to reply to almost every question that way and many young drivers began to copy him even if it is not proper English.

        1. It is not uncommon in sentences like ‘I know for sure that …’ or ‘That’s for sure’.
          Then it is shorter and easier to say than Certainly, Absolutely, Definitely, etc; especially in a noisy environment.

    3. I think KR has summed up their season well.

    4. The problem is that on too many occasions ‘tools’ were driving those red cars ;)

      Vettel should have kept his head cool in Baku, Singapore, Mexico.
      Still beyond me why Raikkonen couldn’t beat Bottas this season.

      1. Good one with the ‘tools’ remark.

        The only time SV’s head wasn’t cool was Baku though.

        And KR couldn’t beat Bottas because while he was struggling to get setups right early in the season, VB was winning in the best car he’s ever had, and ultimately the WCC winning car. It was always going to be a big ask for Ferrari to overhaul Mercedes this season given where they both were in 2016. Ferrari has come a long way in a short time against a dynasty. Better luck next year.

        1. @Robbie Vettel absolutely lost his cool in Singapore. Lewis subsequently showed in Malaysia and USA how a competent title contender races Max. You don’t try a bonzai move, lap 1, on a wet track. Vettel then crashes into Lewis in Mexico as well. Seb has been flustered and protected by crazy FIA calls.

          1. @McLaren I disagree. Seb was racing in Singapore. Couldn’t possibly have known how much Max was being squeezed on the other side by Kimi. Seb didn’t ‘crash into’ LH…that’s simply way overstating what was hard racing, Seb having been taken out of shape by Max’s amazing move, LH having stuck his nose in where he didn’t need to. Not blaming LH, but to blame Seb for anything other than hard racing is to simply just not like him.

    5. One of the reasons is Kimi himself who is well past his prime

    6. Ferrari had weak links 3 fold:

      WDC: Vettel and his poor temperament
      WCC: Kimi not being on the pace
      WDC & WCC: Reliability issues.

      Without those 3 weaknesses the championships would have been winnable.

      1. and to think there was a movement of fans trying to claim that Vettel was doing ‘what Alonso couldn’t’ at Ferrari. put the knives away lads it’s over

        1. And even if he had managed that, it would’ve been cause clearly this ferrari was (imo) not better than mercedes but a challenger, ferrari 2.010 and 2.012 was more like what schumacher did in 1.997, taking an uncompetitive car to the final round of a championship they weren’t supposed to win.

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