Raikkonen sees potential despite messy Friday

Kimi Raikkonen says Friday practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix was "quite messy" for him but he sees potential for Ferrari at Interlagos.

The Finn was fifth fastest in the opening practice session despite a fairly dramatic spin in to the gravel at Turn 4, before improving to fourth place in FP2. Reflecting on his day's work, Raikkonen said there were a number of interruptions which made it difficult for him to make progress with his car.

"In the morning, I had to do some aero testing in the first half and hour," Raikkonen said. "Then we had one run, then we had a small issue with the set-up and then I spun off.

"In the afternoon, a lot of things happening always when we went out. But we got some laps done but it was quite messy in all the ways. It didn’t feel too bad on one lap."

Having suffered some problems with his clutch when trying practice starts, Raikkonen says he is still in the dark over Ferrari's race pace: "I don’t know - it felt OK but we’re still struggling a bit so we’ll see."

Raikkonen's Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel also described Friday as "a difficult day" for the team despite both cars finishing in the top five in both practice sessions.

FP2 REPORT: Rosberg turns the tables on Hamilton

AS IT HAPPENED: Brazilian Grand Prix FP2

Use the red tabs on either side of the screen to scroll through more Formula One news and features

Click here for Friday's gallery from the Brazilian Grand Prix

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

Recent Posts

Hamilton won't miss current F1 cars - but fears 2026 'might be worse'

As Formula 1 prepares to wave goodbye to its current rule set in Abu Dhabi,…

60 mins ago

F1 drivers rally around Antonelli after abuse from ‘scum of the earth’

On the eve of Formula 1’s season finale in Abu Dhabi, drivers set aside championship…

2 hours ago

Abu Dhabi GP: Thursday's media day in pictures

Formula 1's 2025 season hurtles toward its dramatic close this weekend in Yas Marina, with…

15 hours ago

Verstappen: Let McLaren play games – 'all that matters is the trophy'

In a title showdown charged with tension, numbers, and a hint of intra-team intrigue, Max…

16 hours ago

Leclerc says Ferrari early pivot to 2026 ‘a no-brainer’

Charles Leclerc isn’t sugarcoating Ferrari’s struggles this season – but he also isn’t second-guessing the…

17 hours ago

Hadjar moving to Red Bull with ‘no expectations’ amid 2026 reset

Red Bull Racing’s newest recruit, Isack Hadjar, is stepping into Formula 1’s hottest seat with…

18 hours ago