Formula One news

Raikkonen ready to put Turkey behind him

Kimi Raikkonen is happy to put the Turkish Grand Prix behind him, after he struggled to match Ferrari team mate Felipe Massa the entire weekend. The reigning champion, and current championship leader is confident he can bounce back at Monaco.

"I like to play golf and after the Turkish GP I had the same feeling like having a bogey," Raikkonen said. "I came to Istanbul leading by nine points and now I'm seven ahead. Not much changed. I had a really difficult weekend. It started with a problem and went on with another. Fortunately in the end I did not finish too badly. I wanted to fight for a win, but that's racing. Sometimes it just goes wrong since the very beginning of the weekend. So you concentrate to save as much as you can, just like I did in Turkey. I can't be too disappointed about the third spot, considering what happened at the start."

"The weekend at Istanbul started with a problem on Friday, when something was wrong with the gear shifting in the first session of the Free Practice," he added. "So I had to stop and wait until the afternoon to carry on the work. On Saturday morning it was not much better and we had to go into the Qualifying without the best possible set up. I had a lot of fuel on board so the car was pretty good, but I made a mistake on my lap, which cost me too much. The fourth spot on the grid really hurt."

"So far the only the weekend at Barcelona was without any problems," Raikkonen went on. "I hope that the next one will be at Monte Carlo. I think that we have a very competitive car. We'll have two days of tests in France to test the solutions for the Monaco GP. The Team is very motivated to try to be strong on a track, where we were not competitive last year."

more news

• 12 Oct.
  • Kubica takes BMW's eleventh podium of season
  • McLaren reels from major blow
  • Second win crowns major Renault pay day
  • Bourdais penalty hands Massa extra point
  • No joy for Williams in Japan
  • Four home points for Toyota
  • Pointless day for Honda
  • Mixed feelings for Force India
  • Hamilton admits mistake, vows to stay aggressive
  • Delighted Alonso celebrates victory
  • Untouchable Alonso storms to second victory
  • Photos: Sunday at Fuji
• 11 Oct.
  • Honda to announce 2009 driver line-up after the season
  • Ferrari faces uphill battle
  • Williams struggles in qualifying
  • Another double top ten for Toro Rosso
  • McLaren delighted with qualifying
  • Back row again for Force India
  • BMW hopes rest with Kubica
  • Alonso keeps Renault competitive
  • Honda continues to struggle at Fuji
  • Photos: Saturday at Fuji
  • Mixed result at Red Bull Racing
  • Toyota team make it into top ten
  • Massa laments lack of grip
  • Hamilton happy on pole
  • Hamilton takes Japanese pole
  • Kubica on top in wet free practice
• 10 Oct.
  • Bridgestone expects grip to improve during the weekend
  • Buemi to steer medical car
  • Trouble-free day for McLaren
  • Positive day for Toro Rosso
  • Webber gives Red Bull hope
  • Mixed Friday for BMW
  • Force India upbeat after practice
  • Honda looking for more pace
  • Ferrari happy with Friday progress
  • Government will try and save Canadian Grand Prix
  • Strong start for Toyota at home track
  • Renault shows encouraging pace at Fuji

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