A Marriage made in Heaven?
by Craig Normansell with others, on Sep 28th, 2011Welcome to another edition of the Scrutineering Bay, Badger's weekly discussion of all things F1. Although the main story to come from the weekend is the fallout from the Hamilton vs. Massa collision in Singapore, we at Badger have gone down a slightly different route.
To say Williams have struggled this season is not an opinion, it's a fact. However, with the news that everyone's favourite ice-cream eating, rally-driving Finn is interested in one of their race seats in 2012, we asked you;
"Is Kimi Raikkonen joining Williams the right move for both?"
One too many ice creams? - Photo Credit: Sutton Images
Plenty of responses from everyone this week, and we start with...Nick Bean, who sent in via email;
In a word, yes.
Williams is (despite recent history), one of the great names of Formula One and indeed remain to this day the third most successful team in history. Williams lost their way after the departure of BMW and as the money from their backing dried up, an inevitable lack of funds led to pay drivers, poor engine suppliers and a slow (and very sad) decline.
The changes that are taking place at the team signal their intent to return to form. A new (and old) engine supplier in the shape of Renault, floatation on the German stock exchange and a new management/pitwall team are all examples of that.... but there is one thing missing; world class driver.
Pastor Maldonado, for all his faults (which are many) is young, fast and exciting... but, he's also rich and that factor makes him a more desirable choice than Rubens, who, whilst experienced, isn't sparkling in the way he used to. Kimi would be the perfect fit. A world champion returning to one of the greats to help them return to former glory? It all makes sense and you know it.
A positive first entry there!
We raised the topic on Twitter, and the tweets showed a mixed reaction. Here's some of our favourites;
@Butler_F1 Not really, for some reason i only want Kimi back if he is in a car which can win, which the williams won't do
@lapseofsanity hope they've told whoever's in the other car that he'll be doing all the interviews and PR work...
@dustyBlog_F1 Would rather see Hulkenberg get a seat #F1
@Anonymou53 Wouldn't the question be, who doesn't want to see it? #IceMan
@OvoneVibe Finnish papers have already said there's no way he'll be returning to #F1 - and they'd be leaping up and down if if was
@alexturco I think Raikkonen and Williams could be the biggest disaster since Mansell and McLaren.
@GrandPrixDiary Sir Frank to get his cheque book out for Kimi? I don't think so, he couldn't keep him in choc ices with his current bank balance.
Did your tweet make the list?
The final fan to get a mention is...Chris Palmer, who got in touch via the website;
Kimi had the world I'm his hands but couldn't get excited enough to do the opportunity justice. He certainly had talent, he was a world champion (albeit the most forgettable one). Personally I don't need to see him race again, I'd much rather see one of the rookies get a full time drive. Forget Kimi, he's done.
So, is it all smoke and mirrors between Kimi and Williams, or is there any truth to the rumours? Only time will tell! Some fans have had their say, but what's YOUR thoughts?
Comments and Discussion
Every time a Formula One 'retiree' comes back, or a longstanding driver continues for another season, it deprives a rookie of a chance in F1. There are some very deserving young men in GP2 right now, and indeed there's Nico Hulkenberg. I don't think Williams should get a rookie, but they should take on an experienced driver from another team who can then take on a less-experienced driver.
gp2 this year was rubbish apart from grosjen but i agree give hulkenburg a chance.
http://www.williamsrenault.com fan page under construction. will be fully functional early 2012.
Looking forward to Raikkonen trundling around at the back and then throwing the towel in after a year. Walk away Kimi, walk away.
He crashed into the back of a fellow driver on the way to the stage, then couldn't face carrying on. Yeah, I can see Sir Frank and Patrick Head being just fine with that kind of thing.... !
It's not going to happen, don't worry; publicity stunt by all.
It makes Williams look like a credible place for great drivers, and it shows that Kimi's interested in F1 if top teams are interested in him. He won't come back if there's a risk of being a midfielder.
Williams should move themselves closer to the top 10 next year, but there's so many other good teams out there, there's simply no room for another front runner.
As for the experience vs youth argument: Firstly i think drivers coming into F1 are too young nowadays; top flight driver's ages should begin with a 2 otherwise i don't believe they've had enough 'training' in the lower formulae.
Secondly, Kimi is 32, he's not an old man and has potentially another 5 years available in top-flight racing. Or more. I'd much rather see the older guys sticking around as long they're still performing than have a new teenager waft in on a wave of hype and be comparatively rubbish. *cough*Piquet*cough*.
Hulkenburg didn't set the world alight in his debut season and i believe he was extremely lucky to get a test drive, i wouldn't have hired him, way too many unforced errors.
Williams do need a spark of something, taking another risk of youth isn't the answer though. And these Kimi flirtations do nothing to instil confidence for their next driver. They should be bigging-up whoever that may be instead.
Senna or Kovalainen are the latest murmurings i've picked up on.
Though they should both stay where they are (if Kubica isn't ready in time), i rate Timo Glock and his mojo's going down there at Virgin.
Let's have Glock in at Williams and Rubens (if he REALLY needs another year) carted off to MVR. It will be most beneficial to both teams.
Hulkenberg took pole in Brazil! He took pole in Brazil in a Williams! What do you want from him?
See, that's where everyone gets hung up! One pole does not forgive a terrible season, or magically make a driver decent!
Points in five of the previous eight races is hardly terrible.