Zoom The end of an era as Raikkonen moves on

Ferrari had hoped that they would be able to move ahead of McLaren Mercedes and claim third position in the championship in Sunday’s Abu Dhabi finale. However, despite the best efforts of departing drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Giancarlo Fisichella, the team were unable to score and therefore finish the season fourth in the standings.

“It’s disappointing to see third place in the constructors’ championship elude us by a single point, but we have to accept the verdict dished out on track,” said team principal Stefano Domenicali. “We took a strategic decision regarding the development of the F60 a few months ago and we knew that, as time went by, the road ahead would get ever steeper. All the same, I wish to congratulate the entire team who, despite the difficult situation, continued to keep their concentration up, getting on with their work with determination and tenacity.

“Now we must continue to work on the design of the new car, because we have a very simple aim: that of getting back to being in the fight for race wins. This was Kimi’s last race with us and again he gave it his all. We are very disappointed that this year, we did not give him a competitive car and I thank him for never having thrown in the towel, in fact, fighting even harder when the situation was at its trickiest.”

McLaren were naturally happy to beat their arch rivals to the third position, despite a generally disappointing race that saw Lewis Hamilton lead early on before retiring with a brake problem. Heikki Kovalainen recovered well from a gearbox change grid penalty to finish ahead of Raikkonen, albeit still out of the points.

“The fact that we beat Ferrari to third place is of course a matter of pride to us, and I want to pay tribute to all at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes for the superhuman efforts they all made in achieving that milestone,” stated team principal Martin Whitmarsh. “Ferrari are always formidable opponents for us, and next year we hope to beat them again – this time for first place rather than third.”

Earl ALEXANDER
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