Raikkonen Revives McLaren's Hopes
Sunday July 11th, 2004
Finn Kimi Raikkonen revived McLaren's hopes with a strong second place at today's British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
It was the first podium of the year for both the Mercedes-powered outfit and for Raikkonen, who pushed race winner Michael Schumacher hard for most of the race, crossing the finish line just two seconds behind the Ferrari driver.
"At least we got the second place," said Raikkonen, last season's overall runner-up, after his first podium since Japan last October. "I got close but not close enough.
"Although we didn't win today it was an exciting race, and second is a great result for the entire team," added the Finn, who had started from pole position. "All the hard work that went into the development of the MP4-19B has paid off.
"The outcome of today's race is very motivating for the team after the bad first half of the season."
McLaren are currently in fifth place in the Constructors' Championship, having scored 32 points in what has been their worst start to a season in decades. Raikkonen's teammate David Coulthard, twice a winner of the Silverstone race, went on to finish in seventh place.
"Congratulations to Kimi on a great drive," said Coulthard. "Unfortunately despite the MP4-19B's obvious progress I'm not happy about my own performance today. During practice and the race I was struggling with the balance of my car, and I didn't feel comfortable especially in the slow corners.
"We will be testing here at Silverstone on Tuesday and Wednesday, and I will work hard to sort out my set-up problems in order to be much more competitive at the next race at Hockenheim."
Published at 15:33:21 GMT |
