A deserving Champion

[Dare]

Peter Sauber has paid tribute to newly crowned World Champion Kimi Raikkonen, who was given his Grand Prix debut by the Swiss team boss back in 2001.

Sauber stunned the F1 world when he put his faith in a rookie who came straight out of Formula Renault, and even went against the wishes of sponsor Red Bull. He was repaid when Kimi contributed to a fourth place finish in the constructors’ championship, and even more so when McLaren bought the Finn out of his contract.

“I am very happy for him,” Sauber told SPEEDtv.com. “For the last five years he was not so happy, and I think he was able to be World Champion twice during that time. I think he’s an excellent driver. The speed has always been there, but he’s an even better driver now.”

Sauber says he has always has a good relationship with Raikkonen, and insists that he is not the person that most people assume he is.

“He’s a very, very special person. I like him and I accept him. Normally he’s cool and introverted, but he can be emotional. For example when he is together with his friends – especially his friends from Finland!”

[Steven Roy]

I hadn't thought about Peter Sauber's contribution to the career of the new world champion.  I guess it is just as well he didn't listen to all those experts.

One of my favourite racing topics is how inept the majority of people in power are at judging drivers and as a result there are many drivers who should have run at the front of F1 but never got an even break and of course there were others who were supposed to be the next great thing according to various experts and disappeared without a trace.  Stefano Modena and Olivier Beretta spring to mind.  James Hunt went on for hours about how good Modena was.