Raikkonen: Alfa Romeo must "learn a lot" in Bahrain test
Raikkonen: Alfa Romeo must "learn a lot" in Bahrain test
Kimi Raikkonen believes Alfa Romeo must glean every last scrap of information from the limited three-day test in Bahrain if it is to show any sign of improvement in the new Formula 1 season.
Drivers and teams will have precious little time to become accustomed to the new cars as the test runs from March 12-14 at the International Circuit.
In a bid to cut costs in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, teams agreed to a raft of cost-saving measures, including pushing the radical aerodynamic regulation changes back by a year to 2022 and carrying across a large percentage of 2020 machinery into the new year.
Despite the team's prior knowledge of large parts of its car, Raikkonen insisted it cannot afford to waste a moment of testing.
“Roughly in one month's time with the first race everybody will see where everybody is," said Raikkonen.
"It is not many days before the first race so we will need to do a good three days [in testing], [run plenty of] laps, learn a lot from the car and see where we get.”
Raikkonen made his F1 debut 20 years ago, racing with his current team in its former guise as Sauber in 2001.
Conceding he enjoys the driving but has "never been a big fan of all the rest" that goes into being an F1 driver, the 41-year-old is at least looking forward to getting back on track again.
He added: “I’m excited for the year but it’s very unknown because we haven’t tried the car. There are obvious rule changes.
"Where we are going to be, we don’t know, but in a few weeks' time, we will see how things are running and the car is feeling.
“Hopefully we are better off than we were last year. We will do our best wherever we end up being.”
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Newey Red Bull EXIT date revealed as F1 star confirmed at new team - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Verstappen takes F1 swipe at Hamilton and rivals with ruthless remark
- Yesterday 22:57
Marko defends Ricciardo in 'unbelievable' idiot claim
- Yesterday 21:57
Hamilton hints at sensational Newey arrival at Ferrari
- Yesterday 20:57
Suspended Red Bull employee 'grilled' as Horner saga given potential END DATE
- Yesterday 19:57
BLOW for former F1 champion as Mercedes preferences revealed
- Yesterday 18:58
Related news
F1 champion in 'hate' claim after drunken scenes
F1 team to change names between races in 2024
‘If Shrek was in F1’ - Fans BLAST team’s new 2024 car
F1 team announce SIGNING of 'remarkable' driver ahead of 2024 season
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860