Rumours of Raikkonen’s F1 return persist

Kimi Raikkonen has been dogged by rumours of returning to Formula 1 racing since his switch to the World Rally Championship and this time Red Bull is apparently his destination. Red Bull have moved quickly to quell such speculation, adamantly denying that there is any truth to the story by branding it as far-fetched and total nonsense.

It is easy to see why the rumours continue to fly around the Finn regarding his successful spells at McLaren and Ferrari, winning the Drivers Championship in 2007 in his first year at Ferrari. Raikkonen had come close on two other occasions, finishing second in 2003 and 2005 at McLaren but Ferrari provided his breakthrough to glory. 2005 saw him equal the record for most wins in a season without winning the Championship with seven, one more win than his Championship-winning year. However, at the end of the 2009 season, it was announced that Raikkonen would be leaving Ferrari and was replaced by Fernando Alonso. Those looking at the Formula One betting would have expected him to make a swift return.

This began the long drawn out speculation about which team he would land at which has not stopped to this day. McLaren, Mercedes GP, Toyota F1 and Renault all were speculated to be courting the former World Champion but nothing came to fruition. 2010 saw Raikkonen make the switch to rally driving as he joined the Citroen Junior Team, finishing the year a respectable 10th.

The rumours come at a time when Mark Webbers contract with Red Bull runs out at the end of the year and is yet to sign a new one with the team. Webber expressed frustration with team orders this weekend which further suggests he may be on his way out, leaving Red Bull with a place to fill.

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