McLaren already has a experienced winner. What they need is a solid #2. All of them would make solid #2s.

Kimi's quite solid, he's just shy.

F1 is business, not charity. In business you gamble, but you never pay more than you think it is worth.
It might be a sport for the drivers, but not for the teams.

If two goods are equal, you would be silly to go for the more expensive one. If Kimi is asking for more money than he is worth, I would rather McLaren go with the above mentioned drivers.

If McLaren thinks they should get rid of their worse driver and if they think Räikkönen could do better and if the price is right, they'll make the deal with Räikkönen if Räikkönen thinks McLaren is capable enough to provide a car that is championship material and if the price is right. Deserving has nothing to do with it.

McLaren has stated that they're always trying to get two best drivers whenever possible. There's a proven WDC, proven winner available, probably at bargain price. Furthermore McLaren knows exactly what he can do in a car since they have enormous amount of data available of Räikkönen and his teammates in McLaren. I would jump it.

I'm not a Mclaren fan and i don't sell ice creams, so i'm neutral here.
I just think Kimi brings a lot to the table, namely frozen desserts.
But hearing them piling praises on the guy lately, at Ferrari (it's called bluffing), I'd say they probably won't mind if Mclaren put on a few more quids for the finn.

He obviously deserves the drive in the sense that he is a sufficiently excellent driver, but I don't think it would be wise either for him to go there or for them to hire him.

He is obviously driving extremely well at present, but I think it's no coincidence that this is in the absence of Massa. Ever since Massa has not been there, Kimi has seemed like the old Kimi, and he has delivered results that the car really couldn't have been expected to achieve. Massa is the Ferrari family driver (hence their strange decision to retain him for 2010, even though there's no guarantee that he'll be capable of racing at 100% of his previous ability). Kimi has not seemed to thrive in this situation where the other driver is family and he is not. And yet that's what he is staying with if he goes to McLaren.

McLaren have to figure which will give them the better results in the coming years - Kimi in a Massa-type situation, or Nico? I actually think Kimi would win more races at Brawn than Nico would, and I think Nico would win more races at McLaren than Kimi would.

So yes Kimi deserves it, but no he shouldn't go there.

It really is a sad reflection on the Ferrari management they cannot shut their pie holes but keep spewing the shit they have been spewing lately. Why don't they just shut the **** up and let Kimi go gracefully, they should at least afford some basic decency to the condemned.

It was nice to read Marc Gene's thoughts about Kimi, though..

performance and price had to do something with it.


interesting. isn't he the ice man? don't care, just drive?

Why is everyone making McLaren to be the best option? The car is most likely going to be rubbish in 2010. They won’t have kers and still have a long way to go before they are aero efficient. Gove Kimi RBR - Mercedes would supply them an engine and they would have the best car ever. They already have the best car and don’t need kers. Kimi would be stupid to think McLaren are a WDC winning car.

What did he say?

Yes, he does deserve it.

GC

85.71%

The Truth has been spoken

Together, McLaren and Kimi were not winning anything.
When they split, Kimi proved he could become a WDC and Maca proved it could provide a WDC car.
So the question was asnwered. Both are top level and deserve each other.

Furthermore Kimi is more valuable now, after three years at Ferrari [KERS].
McLaren is going down a bit every year, bcs Lewis is not developing the car as fast / as well it should be - after all, he has only driven for Maca.

"I want to take this advantage and thank Kimi Räikkönen for his phenomenal work during the 3 years he has been with us. He will leave Ferrari after the season ends but will leave so that everyone is in a good mood. He is not just only a top driver, which is a clarity, he is much more: a unique driver. He drives really well at the moment."

"As a person Kimi is very special. He has always been the way he is and being a driver in F1 hasn't changed him a bit. I have a really good relationship with Kimi. We often go to eat together. He is one of those persons to whom you can talk about all kinds of things, not just our work. I for one will be missing him when we start working next season."

"It would be a great loss to F1 if Räikkönen wouldn't be on the starting grid in 2010"


Thanks to the Wolf

Damn, I hate to be described as a solid #2.
They should increase their fibre intake.

Pretty overwhelming I'd say.

There's a simpler question to be asked.

Do you even have a clue?

Yes. Explains why Kovalainen drives like a man constipated though.

You got it wrong, mate. He's hardly solid, he's a liquid #2!

Yes. He is as fast as anyone and is a better option for McLaren than anyone else, he is also a proven commodity, unlike Rosberg

What's your interest in this Alonso fan? You can talk all you want whether he deserves a top seat. But top teams are the ones that are talking with him, and that may even include Red Bull. He has already given NO to Renault, Toyota, etc.

Coming from you, I can only conclude that you are afraid of your boy being beaten by Kimi if he has a competitive car next year.

So Button called up to McLaren in 2012 is the new hot tip.


The thread.... Kimi looks much improved without a benchmark, so why not to McLaren?

I am an Alonso fan and want nothing more than Kimi to join Mac and let the battles begin!
2010 would not be right if Kimi were not in a top line seat.

Enough with the ice cream jokes! 3 WDC drivers in the two top teams is what we all want to see!

really?? would be even better if we replace Massa with Button, WDC elect.

Kimi has proven his mettel time and again, suzuka 2005, WDC 2007, for example. His material has not always the best, but he is pragmatic and does the best he can. At least the mclaren seems more bullet proof now than when he was there last. The problem will be Hamilton's love for himself, look what happened to the two time world champion who was his last team mate.

So you'd take an unproven driver who's yet even to win a single race over a world champion that has destroyed ever team mate he has had except pre-accident Massa. Hmh.

Of course he deservers. Last 6 races Kimi has gained more points than anyone else with a car that is pure shit.

No, he does not deserve McLaren. He deserves something better, like Red Bull with a Mercedes engine.

That was the excuse for Badoer, but Fisi has been driving all season so it's not as if he is out of practise.

Drivers have moved between teams in the past and I don't remember them having this much trouble. It would be interesting to hear why he is having so much trouble adapting. I suspect KERS is the main culprit.

KERS and he's not that good.

Yup, I was watching, the 2xWDC got beaten on-track...

Your point being?

I'll take Kimi in a competitive Mac any day of the week thanks very much. He really should have won at least one championship with them. With Lewis there as well, Fernando and Felipe will have their hands full. You can bet on that..

Exactly. And if the powerplants had been a bit more reliable, more than one. But that is an if.

By the way, with Felipe, Kimi, Lewis, Sebastian, Nico and Kubica there, Fernando will have his hands more than full.
He must beat teammate Felipe to start with, then Kubica because of the Renault, then Kimi because of his Ferrari-years.

Not easy 2010 for Fernando.

Does the number 2 seat beside Lewis in McLaren deserve a Kimi?

does he deserve seat!? WTF

he deserves two seats

my point being sir is not what happened on the field but off it. The political arena in the mclaren camp may not auger well for person who is not so very PC savvy as the Hamiltons are, if anything it has tightened and become more stringent since Alonso left. The apparent favouratism that Kimi will face will be that huge 6000lb elephant sitting on the pitwall that no will talk about.
Kimi cannot survive that.

RBR have both Drivers locked out, and both are doing great jobs for the team, so he's got no chance there. I'm not convinced as you are that they have 'the best car'... they are 35.5 points behind the brawns with better drivers. Their car certainly wrks better when the track temp is low, but saying it's the best car is daft. Where were they in Hungary? Valencia? Spa? Monza?

Brawn are an unknown quantity, they may be at the front next year, they may not... either way, they wont want to pay whatever kimi is asking.

Ferrari are done with him

BMW may not even be on the grid

Force India will probably never be consistent front runners without more support from a factory backer

Toyota have already said that Kimi isn't interested, and even if he was they won't produce a race winner (I'd love to be proved wrong here!)

Williams I think are due a return to form, but they probably can't afford him

The three new teams... no chance

So that leaves... Mclaren, the second most sucsessful team in the history of F1, a team that have won 16gp's and a WDC since he left. A team that probab;y have the second best car on the grid at the moment after clawing themselves from the back rows. If you are that convinced that Mclaren wont be at the sharp end next year then I'd gladly enter into a little wager with your good self... fool and his money are soon parted and all that ;)

*edit*

Forgot Renault (easily done of late). I'd love to see Renault back at the front 'rising from the ashes' so to speak. I can't see it hapening next season though.

True. We all know Kimi cannot perform without clear preferential treatment. Kimi said he would join a team where he would get to fight for the WDC. McLaren is not the team for him.



A team he left because he was unhappy with the work environment. Do you think that McLaren will allow him to join rallies and stuff like that? Kimi left on his own after everything McLaren did for him. McLaren don't want such an unappreciative driver back.

So far does 84 % think he deserves a McLaren seat

At some point a majority also thought the earth was flat.

Which we? You and your other two BB accounts?



Pure speculation as always



Yet more pointless speculation, keep it up. I'll quote this if they sign Kimi, and you'll just ignore it. On the edge foruming, EXCELLENT

He didn't do too badly the last time he was there. The Team Hamilton excuse isn't available to him, he was with McLaren for 5 years and he was every bit the favourite son as Hamilton.

Well, they didn't know better. God knows what your excuse is though, it's 2009 now.

I'm sure McLaren would take Vettel if they could (and if Vettel wanted), but Kimi is one of the best drivers out there no doubt. Do we know if there's anything right now that prevents Kimi from signing today, like contractual issues?

My god, put him on the ignore list, so I don't have to read his BS. I had hoped he had become better but no redemption for mr. Kimidoesnotlikemclaren .. -sien.

"Does Kimi even deserve a Mclaren seat?, or any top seat?"

WTF????

Does a WDC deserve a seat at Mclaren? If a recent WDC does NOT deserve a seat. then WHO DOES?

Hello?

There is no dispute that Mclaren have shown their fighting colours of late. They have the magic gauntlet as it were (all things considered as of now). But Mclaren may not be the team for Kimi because he is simply not a political animal in the same vein of M Schumacher or L. Hamilton. He delivers in a very pragmatic and concise manner on the field but he cannot do the "Potamac two step" as the yankees call it.

keeping Kovalainen motivated is the only thing I can think of.