Ferrari and Kimi Raikkonen: A Closer Look at a Formula One Dynasty

    It’s true that Ferrari has won a lot of races in the recent past, but does the team have what it takes to continue their domination? With a 2007 Driver’s Championship and Constructor’s Championship to push them into this season and two of the best drivers in the sport today, its prospects look good. Although a lot of changes have been made to the team and car this year, they seem to be well prepared to handle the pressure.          

    With the new rulebook this season, every team has shown some sort of weakness, and Ferrari is no exception. Although the Melbourne race was a disaster for the team, the three races since then have seen Ferrari climb to the top yet again. As the other teams have had reliability issues with their race cars, the two red bullets have been relatively stable, except for the odd trip into the grass which is probably due to the restricted traction control. This puts even more pressure on the other teams to catch up in development if they want to contend for the championship. The track presence of Ferrari is somewhat intimidating and they have been able to back it up with performance.          

    In the days that Micheal Schumacher was behind the wheel, Ferrari was at the top of the podium, occasionally challenged by Renault. For that amount of time it certainly could have been considered a Formula One dynasty. Granted, Micheal is definitely one of the greatest drivers ever, the car was still very advanced compared to the competition. Even before that time period, Ferrari was always a name to be fearful of when competing on the track.          

    With Kimi Raikkonen leading all drivers and the team scoring the most constructors points so far, this season seems to be going just as planned for Ferrari. The engineering department is as strong as ever with the F2008 being fitted with new wings and ducts at every chance, and a change in management that hasn’t phased a single crew member so far. This could be the dream team of 2008, although Felipe Massa may be left out next year if speculation becomes truth, as Alonso will then be taking full advantage of the reliability and performance of one of those very fast red cars.

    So does the period of time amassed at the top constitute a dynasty? Perhaps the other teams should be consulted as they watch the two red cars get farther and farther away.