Can Anyone Prevent Kimi Räikkönen from Retaining His F1 Title?

From the moment Kimi- Matias Räikkönen drove his Sauber- Petronas C20 into sixth place at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix you couldn't help but wonder what the future held for the young Fin. The sense of anticipation from the motorsport world could have only been further fueled upon hearing it was only his 24th career race. The motorsport world was truely at his feet and it wasn't long until he signed for Ron Dennis and the legandery Mclaren team.

Räikkönen enjoyed limited sucess at Mclaren, consistantly showing speed and race winning potential only to be hindered by a series of bad luck and engine problems. That did however not stop him for mounting a serious challenge to Michael Schumacher in 2003 and Fernando Alonso in 2005. Had he been blessed with a more reliable car it is easy to speculate what could have been for arguably one of the most exciting talents the sport has ever seen.

Although not beeing the type of person to break into a Shakesperian soliloquy his raw speed and a fearless sense of bravery won him fans the world over, stories of his drunken antics during his personal certainly suggest that he is very much alike the drivers of old. The type with genuine character but an unrivaled ability to drive a car, fast.

In 2007 Kimi Räikkönen was finally given the chance to show what he could do with a reliable car and has certainly not looked back. Despite trailing in the rankings for much of last season he got himself in first place when it truely mattered winning six races, more than anyone else and most importantly the world championship. He has since worked his way into a mould of perfection, with strong performances in Malaysia, Bahrain and Spain. Two victories in four races certainly prove this. But can anyone touch him?

The two Mclarens, although fast, do not seem able to match the Ferrari's straight line speed. BMW are closing in on Ferrari but are not yet ready to mount a challenge for race victory leaving team mate Felipe Massa as his only genuine threat, for the time being at least. Massa was dominant in Bahrain, after he sluggish start to the season he needed to be, but for all his experience in racing Ferrari's he often seems too erratic and is prone to make mistakes. Is he consistant enough to mount a challenge to the ice man? With all due respect, probably not.

Arguably the one man who could genuinely challenge him, beside the two Mclaren drivers, is Fernando Alonso however he is somewhat comprimised by driving in a distinctively inferior Renault. For 2008 at least.

Taking into account this the forecast for the 2008 season seems likely to contain many more Räikkönen victories, but as many people would argue. . . it's about time the Flying Fin was on top!