Being that he won at Spa 4 times in his F1 career – the last of which was in an underachieving Ferrari machinery, the 2009's F60 – Raikkonen will always treasure this layout.
“It would have been nice to drive there. It is a great track and was always nice to race there,” admitted the 2007 F1 champion in a recent interview with Finland's Turun Sanomat.
While entirely focused on his maiden campaign inside the World Rally Championship (WRC), Raikkonen still keeps an eye on how the F1 championship is unfolding this year. And, although Red Bull seem like the team to beat at the moment, the Finn argued Ferrari and McLaren Mercedes will return much stronger for the Spa and Monza races, the upcoming two events in the F1 calendar.
“Of course, you have to have a good car, and even though the Ferrari last year was not a top car, it was good enough. I guess they will be in a strong position (in 2010).”
“Red Bull do not have as good an engine and will not win as easily. It is hard to say. McLaren will also be fast on the straights, and even stronger at Monza,” predicted Raikkonen.
The same “engine issue” was brought forward by Red Bull's manager Christian Horner also a couple of weeks back, who admitted that engine power will replace aerodynamics as the deciding elements in the outcome of the race for the next two events. Being that both Spa and Monza are high-speed circuits, downforce will not count as much in setting a good lap time, but the power of the engines.
Ferrari and McLaren currently benefit from the strongest engines in Formula One, while the Renault powerplants are still believed to have some 30HP less, while compensating with good fuel economy.
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