If last year, the 2-day event in his native Finland was regarded as a fun adventure for the then-Ferrari driver – that was actually his first rally event in career – this year's Arctic Lapland Rally will be Raikkonen's first “official test” with his C4, prior to the season opening rally in Sweden.
Citroen chose to give Raikkonen the chance to drive the works C4 WRC, as he joins factory driver Dani Sordo in the French manufacturer's lineup for the aforementioned event.
“This rally is a very good opportunity for me to work with the team in competitive conditions and continue my learning curve with the car. I took part in this rally last year with Kaj, and as the route is largely the same I think that could help us a bit,” said Raikkonen, whose first pictures with his new C4 WRC livery were disclosed by Red Bull earlier this week.
During last year's event, Raikkonen benefited from a Tommi Mäkinen Racing-prepared Abarth Grande Punto S2000, which he eventually took to 13th place overall. Considering that was his very first professional rally outing in career, one could argue his racing skills on snowy and icy roads are quite impressive.
The Finnish event is set for kick-off on Friday morning, and will consist of a 2-leg per day system for both Friday and Saturday. Overall, the rally drivers present at the start of the event will have to tackle 12 special stages (ran on both ice and snow), on approximately 214 km.
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