Kimi Raikkonen blames Carlos Sainz for end-of-test skirmish - 'I guess he was pissed off'

Alfa Romeo

Raikkonen blames Sainz for end-of-test skirmish - 'I guess he was pissed off'

The pair narrowly avoided contact at the conclusion of the three-day test

Ewan Gale

Sunday 14 March 2021 20:20

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Kimi Raikkonen levelled blame at Carlos Sainz for the pair's skirmish at the end of Formula 1 pre-season testing in Bahrain.

On their final in-lap of the three days, Sainz steamed up the inside of the Alfa Romeo into turn nine, with the Finn just noticing the new Ferrari driver's presence in the final moment and narrowly avoided contact.

When asked about the incident at the conclusion of the day's running, Raikkonen did not hesitate to point an accusing finger at the Spaniard.

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"I don't think we touched," Raikkonen insisted. "I don't know. I had no idea he was there and then I saw him last minute and I pulled right.

"I guess he was pissed off and tried to play games but I doubt that we even touched."

A dramatic end to testing ?@Carlossainz55 and Kimi had a close call in the final moments ?#F1 #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/gxmCe2A16b
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 14, 2021

Raikkonen tallied up the most laps of the track on day three with 166, ending the test second on the lap charts overall with 229.

Whilst different team's run plans are kept secret from an engine map and fuel load perspective, Alfa Romeo's pace seemed promising for the new campaign, with Raikkonen pleased with his efforts.

“It was a positive day from a work point of view," he added. "We got all we came here for and now we just have to see where we are when we’re back here racing in two weeks.

"Times in testing don’t mean anything and, right now, we don’t know how all the other teams are performing.

"But we know how our car does and feeling wise, it is better than last year. I guess we are faster than at our best at the end of 2020, but whether that translates into a better performance in the races, that we will have to see.”