Alonso & I are no friends: Raikkonen

GREATER NOIDA: When the news that Ferrari had decided to team up Kimi Raikkonen with Fernando Alonso for 2014 came out, there were many who felt that the Italian team was asking for trouble. For a team who has always favoured one driver over another, putting two world champions together is akin to removing the pin from a grenade and waiting for it to drop.While most drivers would try and assuage such fears and lay to rest any speculation, Raikkonen isn't one of them. He has no time to be nice. Or politically correct.
"We're no friends," he says of Alonso. "I know him just from racing," he says, when prodded a little.
Fireworks are sure to go off next year, whether in the team garage or on the track. Raikkonen is Ferrari's last world champion — the Finnish driver snuck away with the title at the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2007 — but he's also the driver they chose to pay out to make space for Alonso in 2010, who by that time was a two-time world champion and was looking to add to that tally with Ferrari.
Even though Alonso has made the Ferrari more competitive than it actually is, he hasn't been able to crack the Sebastain Vettel-Red Bull puzzle. The Spaniard's fans feel Raikkonen's signing is a slight to Alonso but the the 34-year-old Finn couldn't care less about what people make of Alonso's reactions or feelings. "I made a decision that felt right to me. We'll see what happens. They have a lot of good people there, they've more resources. I know the people there. Next year there will be new rules, different things so nobody really knows what will happen," he mumbles.
But didn't he hate the endless media sessions, the sponsorship commitments and promotional interviews? "It's the same story everywhere," he responds. "Nothing changes, every team is the same."
In fact, the Finn feels the world of Formula 1 is stuck in some kind of time warp. "It's the same people, feeling, places. Nothing's changed. I wouldn't say there's anything different."
In a sport that celebrates rectitude, Raikkonen's aversion to being correct is heartening and entertaining. His reticent nature has pitched him as some kind of a rebellious hero in a sport that sneers at any individuality. Feeling charitable for a change, the Finn can see why that has happened. "There are nice aspects about F1 but with it are attached big brands and companies and you have to watch what you say. The sport has changed a lot in the last 20 years, there's a lot more money involved. There're always some people who don't like certain things. But I'm OK."