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Nicknames sometimes invented by fans, often by the press, reflect a driver’s personality. For Kimi Räikkönen, the nickname “Iceman” was quickly coined. The Finn is a silent type, and only speaks when forced to do press relations. Or almost! Thus, when he had to explain the reason for his recruitment by Luca di Montezemolo, president of Ferrari, to compensate for the retirement of Michael Schumacher Since 2007, the Nordic has been doing lapidary work. Finding an agreement didn’t take long. I absolutely didn’t want to go here or there. I hadn’t planned on going to McLaren, it happened like that, and it was the same for Ferrari”, he says in the podcast Beyond the Grid in 2018. The association initially takes the form of a A honeymoon that began ideally for Räikkönen and Ferrari: he won the season opener in Australia, after starting from pole position. Since Nigel Mansell in 1989, no driver had managed to win his first race with the Scuderia! This reassured the Italian tifosi and media, who were dreading the post-Red Baron era, the one who had given them so much joy during the previous decade.

In addition to this, you need to know more about it.

Very quickly, Räikkönen and Massa proved to be complementary. Faced with the McLaren duo composed of Fernando Alonso et Lewis Hamilton, two drivers who will quickly tear each other apart over the Drivers’ title, Ferrari is banking on a cordial understanding. It’s certainly not a laughing matter, but at least there is no tension to report. Work, nothing but work! “With Kimi, it was quite possible to work well with him, but there was no relationship, no friendship, admits Felipe Massa on the Italian Rai channels. He lived in his own world.” 

Massa briefly n°2

To determine which of the two drivers is favored to aim for the title, Ferrari sets a deadline. On the evening of the Belgian Grand Prix, the one with the most championship points will have the advantage. On a Spa-Francorchamps circuit that he loves (he will collect 4 victories there), Kimi Räikkönen finishes 1ster and took the upper hand over his Brazilian counterpart. With 18 points behind championship leader Lewis Hamilton with four rounds remaining (a victory was worth 10 points), Kimi needed Felipe’s support to catch up with the two McLarens. The São Paulo native fulfilled his mission perfectly, finishing behind his teammate in Belgium and Japan… from where Räikkönen left with just one point taken from Hamilton! With two Grands Prix remaining, hope seemed lost, until an improbable series of events: two victories for Räikkönen, a retirement for Hamilton in China, then a modest seventh place for the Briton in Brazil. The result: a world title snatched by a single point by the Finn’s Ferrari, and a Constructors’ title. Right on target for the Reds!

« It’s perfect teamwork and it paid off. It’s not just in this final, but throughout the year. » pointed out “Iceman”, faithful to his composure, after having achieved his Grail. Felipe Massa swallowed his tears, he who slowed down in front of his Brazilian crowd to facilitate the victory of his companion. “I’m happy to see Ferrari, who trusted me, winning championships. I hope one day it will be me, but I’m happy for Kimi. » A final consecration also for Jean Todt, who immediately passed on the reins of the Scuderia to Stefano Domenicali.

The 2008 season was promised the same scenario. In the first four rounds, Räikkönen took two victories which put him in the lead of the championship, while Massa had to suffer two retirements, including a spin in Malaysia while he was following Räikkönen. However, the Ferraris dominated the field. Four consecutive podiums including a victory then put the São Paulo driver back in contention, while Räikkönen began the summer in difficulty with a F2008 which no longer suited his driving style.

So it was Massa who led the fight against Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), who this time no longer had a cumbersome two-time world champion as a teammate. Without departing from his usual attitude, Räikkönen took on the role of lieutenant at the end of the season without flinching. He stepped aside in favor of his teammate, whom he had nevertheless beaten in qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix, in the penultimate round.

As in 2007, the two Ferrari drivers dominated the final held on the Interlagos circuit (Brazil) but this time, neither could prevent Hamilton from winning, having passed in front of the Toyota Timo Glock’s victory in the final hectometres to clinch his first world title. Ferrari consoled itself with a 16the Constructors’ title. This is, still in 2025, the last title won by the Maranello firm in F1.

A season to forget

The descent into hell began insidiously in 2009. The team failed to master the change in aerodynamic regulations and the adoption of SREC (Brake Kinetic Energy Recovery System) and created a restive F60. The duo only competed in nine Grands Prix together in 2009, as Massa was seriously injured during qualifying in Hungary. A suspension spring detached from Rubens Barrichello’s Brawn GP struck his helmet, causing serious facial injuries. Kimi Räikkönen became isolated, and the short-lived replacements made by Luca Badoer, then Giancarlo Fisichella, were of no use to him (zero points scored by the two Italians). Moreover, with the 2007 title in his pocket, his motivation was flagging. In the podcast Beyond the Grid, the Finn will explain that he was turning the page on F1 to focus on a (brief) reconversion to the World Rally Championship without the slightest regret.

“I was very happy to leave. I’m sure I could have signed a contract, but it made no sense to me and I had absolutely no interest in being here. I was very happy to leave, with all the politics, nonsense and everything else. I could have signed another contract with another team, but I wasn’t interested in that.”

This “policy,” to which Räikkönen, an inseparable component of Ferrari, referred, paradoxically made itself less noticeable during his two stints in red. The Nordic cold had adapted to the Latin character of the Italian team. As for Massa, he was extending his lease after recovering from the Hungarian accident. The Brazilian is preparing to welcome another big name from Spain…