F1: 5 reasons why we love Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen is one of those lovable drivers that nobody hates. Among the dull and politically correct drivers that are currently on the grid, he is a character that is very important to have to keep things interesting in the world of Formula One.

If you are a newbie to the sport, you may be wondering what all the hullabaloo about the Iceman is. Well, here are a few reasons as to why you should love him.

His interviews are never boring!

Sports personalities around the world have learnt how difficult it can be for them if they are not in the good books of the Media. Also, they have understood the hard way that anything remotely controversial they say will be blown out of proportion. Therefore, they resort to cliched responses and practiced answers to almost all the questions they would possibly be asked. In fact, almost all of them have PR managers who control the questions they get asked and the responses they give.

But that’s not how Kimi rolls! Raikkonen has a distinct distaste for the Media and if left alone, he would never speak in front of a camera or to a newspaper. But contracts being what they are, he is forced to appear in front of the Media, and has to answer the mind numbingly boring and repetitive questions.

But his answers are anything but! His interviews are something to look forward to! Here’s a sample:

Nerves of steel!

Or maybe no nerves at all! The kind of moves that he makes on his opponents is something that you would not normally see from most of the drivers, making him very exciting to watch on the track.

Not only that, he’s not nervous about racing at all! In fact, half an hour before he was going to make his debut in Formula One, he was found sleeping! How many people do you know who can do that before such a momentous occasion? I bet none!

Listen to what his former teammate David Coulthard had to say about his sleeping habits!

Prime comedy material

Remember the iconic “Leave me alone, I know what I am doing” quip in the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix? Yes, everyone has heard of it, that’s how iconic it has become! I have lost count about the number of times I have played the video with that radio message and his other one where he tells his engineer not to remind him how to drive!

Tag him with Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear, and it would make for some of the most deadpan set of jokes you can laugh to. My favourite was when Jeremy told us how when Kimi was asked what the helmet means to him, he replied, “It protects my head”!

Here are few more jokes from that show!

He loves having fun!

One of the things Kimi is blamed for is that he doesn’t smile much. Even when he is on the top step of the podium, all he does is give a very faint smile and no expression of jubiliation. In fact, he is more concerned about drinking the champagne rather than spraying it on the others, as is the tradition!

But contrary to poular perception, Kimi Raikkonen does love having fun. It is just that he likes to do it privately, and not let the Media navel gaze at what he is up to. If you search on YouTube, you would find very less videos seeing him party. But on the ones you do, you will find him very happy.

Even here, he seems to be having fun while trying to tell Natalie Pinkham what to do!

Most importantly, he knows how to drive!

While all the above reasons are perfectly valid as to why we love Kimi Raikkonen, the most important reason is that he certainly knows how to drive!

He has had some incredibly great races, with McLaren, Ferrari and Lotus, and has given us some great moments to cherish. He won the 2007 Drivers’ title while racing for Ferrari and would have won at least a couple more, if it wasn’t for the unreliability of McLaren.

Here’s a sample of what he can do. This one was in the penultimate lap, after he had come from P17 to take the lead in the last lap!