Raikkonen refusing to play Vettel's wing man

Kimi Raikkonen refused to throw his weight behind Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel's attempts to claw back ground in the Formula 1 title race, claiming he was only interested in gaining "the best result possible for myself" at the Russian Grand Prix.

Vettel says he must win all six of the remaining races in 2018 if he is to overhaul Lewis Hamilton in the drivers' standings – the Mercedes man having opened up a 40-point lead.

Raikkonen's hesitance to assist Vettel was apparent in Italy, where he qualified on pole and then battled his team-mate on the opening lap, who then made costly contact with Hamilton – who went on to beat the Finn and extend his championship lead.

And the 'Iceman', who will leave Ferrari for Sauber at the end of the year, has little interest in playing the team game in Sochi.

Asked if he was out to assist Vettel's fight, Raikkonen told Sky Sports: "I'm going to get the best result possible for myself and obviously doing that it's the best that I can offer for the team."

Ferrari were more than half a second off Mercedes' pace in Friday practice in Russia, but Raikkonen sees no cause for concern.

"We did what we normally do and I don't understand why people make such a fuss of Friday lap times," he said. "I guess you have nothing else to do!

"For us, it's a very normal thing that we try things and see what happens and then do the normal work for tomorrow.

"In qualifying we'll see if it worked or not.

"It's not an easy place to go fast but it's same as any track, the last tenths are the hardest to find."

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