22/10/2006
NEWS STORY
Team McLaren Mercedes drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Pedro de la Rosa finished today's 71-lap Brazilian Grand Prix in fifth and eighth place respectively. Kimi was on a two-stop strategy pitting on laps 21 (8.5 seconds) and 51 (7.1 seconds), whilst Pedro was on a one-stop strategy coming in on lap 35 (10.8 seconds). Team McLaren Mercedes finished third overall in the Constructors' Championship with 110 points. Kimi finished fifth in the Drivers' Championship with 65 points, Juan Pablo Montoya is eighth with 26 points and Pedro 11th with 19 points.
Kimi Raikkonen: "This was a very difficult race. My car was not easy to drive today because I didn't have much grip. The straight line speed could have been better as it was not easy to overtake slower cars. I ran wide once towards the end of the race which allowed Michael Schumacher to close in, and despite all my efforts I couldn't keep him behind. As this is my last race for Team McLaren Mercedes I want to thank everybody in the team who have supported me throughout my five years here."
Pedro de la Rosa: "A very tough race for me. I was on a one-stop strategy and obviously this was a little too hard for the tyres. As a result I couldn't really attack, but at least I scored one point for the team. On the occasion of this last race of the season I want to thank my team for giving me the opportunity to race, it was a pleasure and an honour to compete for Team McLaren Mercedes this year. I would also like to congratulate my compatriot Fernando Alonso on winning his second Drivers' World Championship."
Ron Dennis: "A disappointing outcome and not the way to finish what has been a difficult season. However next season already starts tomorrow. Congratulations to Fernando for winning the World Championship again. We will work hard to give him the same opportunity next year. I would like to wish Kimi all the best for next year, but as you would expect we will be doing our very best to ensure that we beat him."
Norbert Haug: "The result is not what we expected today. Obviously we didn't have the race speed to achieve a better position from second place on the grid. We will now focus all our efforts on the next season in order to definitely do a much better job. Congratulations to Fernando Alonso and Renault on winning both the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships. I want to thank Kimi for the five years he has competed for us and we are looking forward to race against him next year. As this was Michael's last race of his career I would like to wish him all the best for his future life, Formula 1 will be different without him, but I always will have great memories of his 15 years in the sport."
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