Kimi Raikkonen heads into this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, a race he has won on four occasions, with the extra motivation of having a new contract with his Scuderia Ferrari team for the 2016 season.
Raikkonen was happy to be confirmed for another year with the Italian team, and feels the team are on an upward spiral, with the 2015 SF15-T being a much improved car compared to its predecessor of 2014, the F14 T. He also believes the team should have a competitive car in 2016.
“I feel great, I’m really happy to be with Ferrari for one more year,” insisted Raikkonen. “It’s a great team to be with, there’s a great team effort and a great atmosphere and I’m sure we can do great things for the future.
“Compared to last year Ferrari made a better car, we are improving all the time and the results are showing that. The feeling in the team and the way people are working together are the best I’ve ever found.
“Next year I’m sure we can have a good car, because we have all the people and the tools to do better.”
Raikkonen feels the team need to have less problems and make less mistakes during the second half of his season, and heads into Ferrari’s 900th Grand Prix this weekend at Spa-Francorchamps looking to be fighting at the front of the field, much like he was doing last time out in Hungary before a car issue forced him into retirement.
“In the second part of the current season we’ll have to do better, trying to minimize mistakes and problems, aiming for the front all the time,” said Raikkonen.
“On Sunday it will be the 900th Grand Prix for Ferrari, I have had great moments with the team, it’s great to be part of a team with so much history, and we’ve achieved a lot together.
“Spa is a very nice place to come, it’s a great circuit for the drivers and the spectators. Things here are never easy, everything can suddenly change and the race can be quite exciting for everybody. We’ll try to have a good weekend and see where we end up.”
