300th career GP: “Just a number” for Räikkönen

As a former President of the French Republic would say: it affects one without moving the other. Kimi has always been like that: impassive, silent, imperturbable. This is also a bit why the 2007 world champion remains so adored. 

This Monaco Grand Prix therefore marks the 300th participation in F1 of the Flying Finn. His stable Alfa Romeo has planned two or three little things to mark the occasion. Räikkönen would have done without it. 

« I've tried to get them canceled but haven't been able to do so so far., he says behind his inseparable glasses and with that monotone tone that characterizes him. There is nothing different compared to the previous race. At the end of the day it's just a number ». 

All the same, 300 Grands Prix, that’s a good thing for your man! The native of Espoo is preparing to join record holder Rubens Barrichello (326 starts) on the shelves, Fernando Alonso (314), Jenson Button (309), and Michael Schumacher (308). Under contract until 2020, Räikkönen is expected to set a new benchmark next season. And in case you were wondering: this isn't really going to move the paddock iceman. 

« I'm not here to have the greatest number of GPs on the clock, he brushes off. This brings me no satisfaction. It's a round like any other this weekend but people are trying to celebrate the event. What's the difference with the last race? »

So since 2001 and his debut in the premier category, what has changed according to Räikkönen? Not the journalists obviously. “VYou always ask me the same questions ". Sport, a little more then. “ But it's like everything in life, Iceman shade. If you compare today to the early 2000s, lots of new things have burst into people's daily lives. It's a natural evolution ». 

If Raïkkönen continues to drag his spats in the paddock 18 years after his first steps in F1, it is because he still enjoys driving, even though his nonchalant attitude has often been perceived as je-m'. madness.  

« Regulatory changes have had some effects, but driving itself hasn't really changed, replies the person concerned. The competition is still more or less the same. If you take 10 racing cars, they don't drive any differently. The sound is no longer the same – that's all. The goal remains to go as fast as possible and race ». 

And this is what matters most in the eyes of the new tercentenarian.