Raikkonen leaves rivals trailing on comeback
FORMER world champion Kimi Raikkonen announced his official return to Formula One after a two-year absence yesterday by setting the fastest time on day one of pre-season testing in Jerez.
The sport’s regulations meant the 32-year-old, who will drive for Lotus this year, had to wait until yesterday to try out his new team’s 2012 car, having previously been restricted to driving a two-year-old model in the build-up to the new season.
Raikkonen has spent the last two years competing in the World Rally Championships but displayed few signs of ring-rust, setting the pace from early in the day.
The ex-Ferrari man began by clocking a lap of one minute 20.5 seconds, before bettering that mark by nearly a second. Indeed, his fastest time was quicker than the best lap set by any car in testing at Jerez before the start of last season.
Red Bull, who dominated the 2011 campaign from start to finish, saw their pre-season test programme delayed by the late arrival their new car’s right wing, while Britain’s Jenson Button was restricted to only a handful of laps in the new McLaren due to routine systems checks.