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Could Raikkonen join Red Bull in 2014? (30 posts)

Topic tags: 2014, Raikkonen, RBR

Viewing post 16 to 30 (30 total posts)

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raymondu999 said 7 months, 1 week ago:

On the title of the thread, my simple answer is – I don’t see why not.

But is he the number 1 choice? I don’t think he’s held in special regard. I think he has just about the same chance as the other top drivers who don’t have contracts. Which is, I think, in the same vein as what @prisoner-monkeys thinks

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katederby said 7 months, 1 week ago:

Slightly off-topic, but doesn’t anyone else find this whole whatwillkimidonext.com thing a bit silly and out-of-character for him? I thought he didn’t care for all the BS surrounding the sport and here he is announcing his endorsement to some brand of men’s perfume or whatever.

Agree, clearly this is not the way to announce something as serious as a team move.
And although I don’t think a driver’s PR potential is enough to influence a team’s choice, I agree Raikkonen isn’t necessarily a perfect fit for Red Bull; I seem to recall reading something of Dietrich Mateschitz’s dislike of smoking and alcohol.

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Hotbottoms said 7 months, 1 week ago:

@tony031r

hotbottoms – I’m sure I will attract a lot of criticism for this remark but…the E20 was capable of winning up to the mid-season.

I agree. Had Lotus and Kimi gotten everything right, they could’ve won some races on the first half of the season. In fact, that’s pretty much what I said in a post that you’re quoting:

Even though Lotus was good enough to fight for occasional victories on the first half of this season,

… but I think that …

their car is now only the 4th best and I predict that next season they are going to be solid midfielders

Lotus doesn’t have the kind of resources, personnel, managament or experience that RBR has. Therefore most likely RBR will keep producing better cars than Lotus. If Kimi could decide between RBR and Lotus, I’m sure he’d choose Red Bull. But does Red Bull want Kimi? If Vettel stays, no. If Vettel leaves, possibly.

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Antonio Nartea said 7 months, 1 week ago:

In fact, that’s pretty much what I said in a post that you’re quoting:

@hotbottoms – Oh…sorry about that. I need to sort my careful-reading skills out. :)

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Nitin Karadia said 7 months, 1 week ago:

I think Kimi at Red Bull would be fantastic. He fits the Red Bull Way, meaning he snowboards, tried rallying etc… The only way this would possibly happen is if the Vettle/Ferrari rumours materialise. To be honest I would love to see Kimi and Vettel as team mates at Red Bull. Kimi is still quick and learns tracks very quickly, I think this is where Webber fails on certain tracks. Kimi does not have a favourite type of track, like he mentioned in his comments at SPA. Kimi is still quick!

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Girts said 7 months, 1 week ago:

@AdrianMorse I agree that it’s a bit silly and unlike him to create this hype just to announce that he is staying with Lotus in 2013 or is going to promote McDonald’s or something like that. This is why I thought that there could possibly be more behind that.

As for RBR’s line-up in 2014, I don’t think they will consider Webber to be good enough to fight for the title. He has never finished 2nd in a championship behind Vettel and is unlikely to do that this year, too. So it’s not like any decent driver is capable of winning titles with that car.

Raikkonen’s character and public image are probably not ideal for Red Bull but I feel he has changed since he left F1 in 2009 and that he has learned to turn his liabilities into assets to a certain extent, too. After all, RBR are in F1 to win and I think the driver’s ability to do that will matter more than anything else when they decide about Vettel’s replacement one day.

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Estesark said 7 months, 1 week ago:

I think a Räikkönen – Ricciardo combination would be a pretty good move for Red Bull if Vettel were to leave them ahead of 2014. But there is still so much time for the situation to change between now and then. Maybe a driver from one of the midfield teams will have a phenomenal 2013 and force himself into contention for a top seat. Maybe Webber will challenge for the title again next year and decide to stay on for another year. Maybe Vettel won’t go to Ferrari after all. Who knows?

So my answer to the thread’s question is yes, Räikkönen could go to Red Bull for 2014, but there is little point in speculating about it at this stage. I’m sure the “What Will Kimi Do Next” video has nothing to do with signing for Red Bull.

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MazdaChris said 7 months, 1 week ago:

It would be a hell of an about-turn for RBR to emply anyone from outside of their own Young Drivers programme. That programme is extremely comprehensive and designed specifically to find the next generation of world champions. Their last one graduated to F1 in 2007. If they haven’t found another one by 2014, that’ll be 7 years without producing top level talent. I find that difficult to believe, with the resources they put into the programme.

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xjr15jaaag said 7 months, 1 week ago:

I think it’s a good idea; Kimi and Seb are friends, and Kimi is a lot more timid now; he’s still blindingly fast, but he’s unlikely to do anything stupid, which reduces likelihood of friction in the team.

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plushpile said 7 months, 1 week ago:

So, just going to throw this out there.

If Red Bull are going to sign Kimi (or any other established driver) in the future then what is the point of Toro Rosso?
Kimi at Red Bull = not going to happen

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BasCB said 7 months, 1 week ago:

Personally I think that Kimi, while at a higher level currently as Schumacher is, won’t be even close to being Red Bull material in 2 years from now. And I doubt Kimi himself would be all that interested. Then again, I was highly doubtfull about him getting back into F1 as well, so you never know!

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Glen Carroll said 7 months, 1 week ago:

Well this team is claiming to have officially signed Kimi Raikkonen next year but I don’t know what they race in http://81.90.66.164/

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Keith Collantine said 7 months, 1 week ago:

It’s just a publicity stunt. They’re selling clothes.

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katederby said 7 months, 1 week ago:

@KeithCollantine Indeed, it always had the look of a commercial deal and nothing to do with where Raikkonen would be driving next year or two.

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f1alex said 7 months, 1 week ago:

Kimi’s already got a contract for next year anyway, so it was never going to be an earth shattering announcement. :)

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