Formula One news

Räikkönen joins Rally Finland

Kimi Räikkönen will be taking part in his home round of this year's World Rally Championship. The 2007 World Champion, who has already contested two rallies this year, including national Arctic and Italian events, and will once again be getting behind the wheel of a Fiat Grande Punto in his homeland.

Having tested the Punto S2000 in Finland last week, the Ferrari driver has again been granted permission to take part in the event, one of the fastest on the WRC calendar and taking place from Friday 31 July until Sunday 2 August, the first weekend of F1's summer break which starts after the Hungarian Grand Prix in two races' time.

The Lapland Rally was Räikkönen's first of 2009

Joining Kimi inside the car again will be co-driver Kaj Lindstrom, who partnered compatriot and four-time World Rally Champion Tommy Makinen. "Rally Finland is not going to be easy, for sure," Lindstrom admitted as he talked of taking part with Raikkonen in a car prepared by Makinen's team. "The rallies we have done so far have been smaller events. A three-day WRC round is much longer and more intense than those national events and it doesn't just start with the rally; we have two days to go through the recce and make the notes. Kimi makes very good pace notes, but there will be pressure on for the recce."

With Finland's gravel and series of impressive 'yumps', the country's Rally is one of the most spectacular of the year. "He has competed on snow and asphalt, but never gravel, but we have tested on gravel," Lindstrom continued. "One of the hardest things for Kimi will be the speed of this event; Rally Finland and the roads used are so fast, like nothing we have done before - that does take time, but let's not forget that this guy is a pretty good driver! He's very talented and I'm sure he will cope fine."

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