08/06/2017
NEWS STORY
Though he admits he was "not happy" following the Monaco Grand Prix, when many believed he was ordered to move aside for teammate Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Raikkonen insists it was because he doesn't like to finish second.
The Finn is also adamant that Ferrari has not yet decided to throw all its efforts behind one particular driver.
Asked if the Maranello team has adopted such a policy, Raikkonen told reporters in Montreal: "No, we don't have anything.
"And when it comes to that point in the season, when one guy has a chance and the other guy doesn't have chance, it's normal," he continued. "It's like it's always been in any team I've been in F1. I don't have any issues with that, I think it's fair game. We fight until we can and if we have to do something else, then fair enough."
Asked about Lewis Hamilton's post-Monaco comments, when the Briton claimed Ferrari has already made its decision, he said: "I don't know how much he knows about other teams, but whatever he thinks is fine for me.
"We know what we do and sometimes this kind of thing happens, it's nothing unusual," he added.
"We know our rules in the team, we know what the team wants and it's simple as that," he continued. "We race as hard as we can. We always try to beat each other, one guy will be in front every time. This time it happened like that. It happens.
"At this point of year it makes no sense because you have so many races to go," he said in response to repeated questions on the same subject of Vettel being number one. "We are not trying to waste energy on what people think we are doing. We are doing our best, and as I said we have a clear policy."
Asked about his demeanour on the Monaco podium, and if it was because he was "mad" at the way the race had unfolded, he said: "I'm not mad, I was never mad. I was just not happy to finish second... simple as that."
And as Fernando Alonso attacked the media for focussing too much on the future, inevitably Raikkonen was asked about his.
"It's nothing I need to share with any of you," he said. "It's none of your business, but you keep writing anyway, so it doesn't change. The people who need to know, know. We'll see what happens.
"I have no contract for next year," he added. "There are always a lot of rumours about my contract every year but what happened in Monaco is nothing to do with my contract."