Fernando Alonso said he was pleased to share many years in F1 with retired Kimi Raikkonen and admits he shared an interesting view of the sport with Iceman.
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen both made their F1 debut in 2001. Until Raikkonen left F1 for two years in 2010, their careers went on in parallel.
And in 2014, two years following Kimi Raikkonen returned to F1, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso became teammates in Ferrari F1. But a year later, the two went on different paths, and Alonso left F1 in 2019 and 2020.
“The moment we make our debut, it’s not clear what the future holds,” Fernando Alonso told Beyond the Grid.
“We both had a great time in F1. We both won world champions, but maybe in 2001 they weren’t sure of their success.”
“But I’m happy to share it with you for years. He’s a very good character in F1 and I’ll miss him very much next year.”
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen have fought many battles on the track during their nearly 20-year career in F1, and from early on they have grown with strong respect for each other.
Kimi Raikkonen was dubbed “Iceman” because of his blunt media response on the track, but Fernando Alonso says he has a warm personality away from the track.
“He’s very honest and can’t lie. He’s the man you see,” Fernando Alonso explained.
“Some of the masks we see at him are so cold that we don’t talk much, and there are others inside.”
“I’m not an iceman. I think he’s pretty warm inside. You might need to meet him outside the race and see you real.”
“We sometimes meet at restaurants, outside the airport and paddock … sometimes we have parties!”
Fernando Alonso has always appreciated Kimi Raikkonen’s candidness and says he is connected to Raikkonen in many aspects of each other’s disciplines, such as the fake and deep territories of the F1 world.
“He’s one of the people who can honestly talk regarding different topics following the race, and he’s on target,” said Fernando Alonso.
“I share a lot of his ideas and ideas regarding F1 and this world. This is the bubble we live in, not the real life.”
“We have all the facilities here. We are living this easy life. We are traveling on a good plane and in a 5 star hotel. We are all helped by everyone.”
“But on Sunday night, we are ordinary people and we tend to laugh at how this world becomes fake.”
Category: Category: F1 / Fernando Alonso / Kimi Raikkonen
