20/08/2008
NEWS STORY
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As the 'summer break' comes to an end, the F1 teams can look ahead to seven races in eleven week, seven races in which the 2008 World Championship will be decided.
Having pulled off a late shock in 2007, snatching the title from under the noses of the McLaren duo, race fans are wondering whether Kimi Raikkonen can repeat the feat again this year.
While some claim that the Finn has lost the hunger and is seriously considering retirement, Kimi claims to have other ideas.
"The break is over and it's time for the last part of the season to start," he writes in his blog for Ferrari. "The weather wasn't great during my short holidays, but I chilled out a lot with my family, played some golf, watched the Olympics on TV and rode my new bike. I love all sorts of sport and the Olympics are an incredible event. It's exciting to watch athletes giving it all and fighting for the gold medals. I have great respect for athletes like Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt, who are the best of the best. Obviously I like it when the Finns are doing well, too!"
Looking ahead to his own battle, the battle to retain his crown, he continues: "It's time to concentrate again on my work now. Formula 1 is a sport, which never stops. The Team has worked hard to be ready for the race at Valencia, the first of the last part of the season. From now on every single race will be extremely important and every single point will have a great value: the less there are the more important they become.
"I know Valencia, because we've done several tests here last winter, but now we're racing in the city on a new track: I'm sure it will be a great atmosphere. I've seen the new track only from the position of an on-board camera and it seems to be very fast for a street circuit. I always love to drive on new tracks and I am always very quick to know them. I can't wait to race at Valencia.
"Again this season shows that you should never give up. There were some races, where things didn't go well, but for one reason or the other I was able to collect some precious points. My position after Hungary is better than before the race. We haven't lost anything, but we need to get better results, consistently. I think that the outcome of the Championship will be very tight, with Ferrari and McLaren very close together in terms of performance and three drivers in a position to win the title. I need to have at least one point more than my competitors after the last race of the season: this is the sole aim, the rest is details. We have to start well at Valencia, where it's more important than in other places to drive with continuity from Friday on: I hope I'll have a trouble-free weekend to try to set up the car the best way possible, especially for the qualifying lap. The qualifying will be extremely important, although I think that there are some possibilities on the track to overtake. If it's hot that will help Ferrari. Like at Montreal you also need a bit of luck and I hope that it will not end for me as it did in Canada: anyway, there's no need to worry until we race.
"We just have to fight until the end and try to win."