Kimi Raikkonen: “He is the best driver. He arrived in my second stage at Ferrari. He won in front of me and I realized that a star had been born”
Kimi Raikkonen recently gave an interview for the blog that the Italian journalist Leo Turrini writes in the medium ‘Quotidiano.net’, where he praised two names: Max Verstappen and his namesake Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
THE Finn was forceful when asked who is the best driver on the current grid regardless of how competitive his car is. He had no doubts.
“Max Verstappen!”he answered. And he explained, remembering the historic triumph of the Dutchman in Barcelona 2016in his first race at Red Bull after being promoted with the season already started. He got into the Red Bull and took advantage of the clash between the two Mercedes, Hamilton and Rosberg, to become the youngest driver in history to win an F1 Grand Prix.
“I saw him arrive in F1 during my second stage at Ferrari. Max is a phenomenon. He won his first race in the 2016 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix in front of me, ten years ago. That’s when I realized that a star had been born”he explained.
He is confident that Kimi Antonelli can win the title
Raikkonen also had time to refer to the fashionable young man, who curiously shares one of his names with the Finn. We are referring to Andrea Kimi Antonelli, current leader of the F1 World Championship with 43 points ahead of his teammate George Russell. Kimi has achieved 4 victories out of a possible 5 at this start of the World Cup and Raikkonen believes he has the ability to withstand the pressure to fight for the title.
In fact, he does not consider that the Bologna player could happen like Oscar Piastri in 2025, who lowered his performance in the decisive moments of his fight for the crown against Norris.
“Of course I follow Kimi Antonelli’s exploits with great sympathy. I find it funny that he has the same name as me, although I think I have understood that it is a simple coincidence. Of course, he is really very good,” express.
“Obviously in Formula 1 you don’t win 4 consecutive Grands Prix if you don’t have a special talent. Antonelli’s numbers are impressive. It is essential to have the right car, but it has always been like this, in all eras,” he expressed.
Kimi can win the title, yes, and he believes it too. You can tell by how he approaches the races, by the spirit he puts
And he answered the million dollar question. Can Antonelli win the title in 2026? “Yes, and he believes it too. You can see it by how he approaches the races, by the spirit he puts in,” he said.
“Antonelli will not lose concentration, he is showing maturity. He will have to avoid imitating the Piastri of 2025: at one point the Australian from McLaren seemed to have the title in his pocket, but he could not stand the pressure. The Italian boy (Antonelli) will not fall into the same trap”he commented, bluntly.
He will have to avoid imitating the Piastri of 2025. Antonelli will not fall into the same trap
And of course, he talked about Ferrari. Kimi Raikkonen, with his F1 world champion title achieved in 2007, remains the last Ferrari champion in F1.
“When I left the Scuderia at the end of 2018, I hoped that the team would soon find a successor to me in the championship record. It hasn’t happened yet, but from a distance I see encouraging signs,” he concluded.
