Enjoy this master at work.

My second favourite stint of Kimi after his McLaren one. Even though he won the championship with Ferrari, the skills and moves he showed in that Lotus reminded me so much of his McLaren days.

Lotus Kimi was something else. Getting just two wins during that stint was less than Kimi deserved, but that basically sums up Kimi's whole career.

his control was seriously incredible. he knew that car like it had been a part of him his whole life. he knew exactly how to slot it in to get through corners double wide

I can still remember how pumped up I was when I heard that Kimi was coming back. One of the reasons that made 2012 season legendary

Kimi’s race craft is a huge inspiration to me. As a kart racer, I can tell you there’s a LOT of guys who consistently win races through dirty driving (wanging it up the inside out of nowhere, tapping back ends just enough to push people off line for the next corner etc) but few who truly have the talent and skill set to win clean. I absolutely love racing with guys who much like Raikkonen can race inch perfect without contact.

Wish the Lotus saga had a different ending.. and I am gonna say; no move to Ferrari for Kimi. He seemed so relaxed, himself, took that 4th best car into title-decider 2012 and drove that car way past it's abilities.. only if the team had it's finances in balance..

He was about average in Melbourne 2012. Bur after that, he got it going. His racecraft was at his very best in Bahrain 2012, Monaco 2013 (till Perez crash), Korea 2012, Spa 2012, Abu Dhabi 2012, Singapore 2012 and many more. Sadly after tyre compund change in 2013 mid and wheelbase update, he could not get on top of tyre management. Perez is called tyre whisperer these days. What a yoke compared to Iceman 🔥

The most amazing thing about that, is that i can barely remember any mistakes from him during that era! Always on the absolute edge in constant wheel to wheel battles (as the field was insanely close during that period), yet he never binned it into the wall and never had any major contacts (the exception being the 2012 Japanese GP, but it was Alonso's fault).

Kimi's racecraft can easily one of the (if not the) best of the last 50 years of the sport. Even beyond Prost, Senna, Hakkinen, Lauda, etc. This guy had almost no experience before he jumped in an F1 car. And his moves where phenomenal from the start. Personally I easily rate him as the best raw talent of formula 1.

7:46 jesus christ. Do people realise how amazing this is? Not a single vid out there could better demonstrate kimis brilliance. A god of a racer

Kimi and michaels wheel to wheel battle at turns 1&2 interlagos was the stuff of legends. An iconic moment in motorsport. Two of the finest f1 drivers ever havinf a good old battle. Love it Verstappen and Hamilton tried to replicate that this season and the pair of them royally cocked it up. Cringeworthy

It just shows that Kimi’s energy goes into smarts and racing rather than talking. Actions speak louder than words, literally Kimi.

He's so precice and respectful to opponents same time , wheel to wheel so close but not even messing anything. Iceman at his prime

This era of Kimi was so amazing to watch

Kimi's awareness of the space was just the best. No competition. He could judge the space with Maldonado, what else could explain this. The fairness that Kimi had while racing, no one even comes close. One of my top two favourite drivers as I always get confused in who is on the top in my list!!👍👌

Even Schumacher gave him room. Tells you a lot about drivers appreciative of Kimi's racecraft.

might be biased because a) I grew up in V8 era and b) I just really love it when non-top team driver does incredibly well and get on the podium or win, but to me this stint of Kimi was as good as his stint at Mclaren. To me, it was proof that he can drive slower cars incredibly fast as well. Also story of a driver almost bankrupting his team just by being too good at his job is hilarious

Not much talking, not much bullshiting around just pure racing passion 🙏🙏

Extremely underrated at Lotus. Putting that car in places it shouldn’t be in almost every race

Ciaron , THANK YOU, for this wonderful film. 19 minutes of great overpassing, in which Kimi is never forcing one adversary. Is there any pilot today that you could follow his moves in 2 seasons , back to back, have so many action and yet all of them so clean?

15:00 Watching this battle with the joy of hindsight is a wonderful thing. Knowing that Kimi used these exact same defensive lines with worn tyres against Hamilton on new rubber on Lap 21 of the 2018 US GP. This part of his tremendous defence resulted in Lewis eating up his tyres trying to pass him, thus allowing Kimi to win on a sub-optimal one-stop. Raikkonen's brilliant defending on aged rubber mitigated Lewis' tyre advantage during his second stint on his preferable two-stop strategy, resulting in Hamilton having too much ground to make up after his second stop, and Kimi therefore taking the chequered flag. This race was one of Kimi's all time greats in my opinion. Especially considering that, contrary to what the pundits said at the time, Ferrari did not get "the strategy bang on this afternoon" as I recall Crofty saying. The one stop was clearly achievable, as Kimi unquestionably proved, but it was NOT optimal. Lewis' cheap two-stop under VSC was better. The one-stop was an achievable shot in the dark from Ferrari's perspective, because whilst it was doable on paper, it relied on both a defensive and tyre conserving masterclass from Kimi to pull it off. Also worth noting that the Verstappen blockade in the final few laps certainly didn't hurt his chances, but again this is something Ferrari could not possibly have accounted for when they committed to the risky one stop. Overall Kimi achieved an against the odds race win with an inferior strategy, with no teammate to support him, against a prime Lewis Hamilton in a superior Mercedes car. It's a drive that STILL doesn't get the full credit it deserves, and I would love to see a video in the future taking a closer look at it. I'd like to thank you Ciaron for providing us with this great Kimi content. Hopefully F1 & DTS newbies will stumble across this channel and discover that, actually, he wasn't just a 'haha funny team radio bwoah man.' But rather one of the most prodigious natural talents F1 has ever seen. There is a very good reason why the legend Sebastian Vettel named Kimi as "the most naturally talented driver" he's ever raced with just before he retired last week.

Oh man, Bahrain 2012 still haunts me, Kimi should have won that one. How different was the wheel to wheel back then, just enough respect between drivers, nowdays 90% of those would have ended up in collisions and whining on radios. And that white helmet, really throws you way back to the good days.

True master. All your Kimi's videos are the ultimate compilation mate. Great work. keep on !!

I was always a Michael Schumacher fan during the 00's. But then he retired and then raikonnen went to Ferrari. I was a fan immediatly, but I was never aware of the amazing skill that Kimi displayed during the 03 and 05 season. Thanks to you I now know that Kimi was special (say he was alien like). Keep making these videos and posts and keep Kimi's legacy alive!

Nice memories...thx for the great video mate!

Total perfection if he had retired in 2020 instead of in 2021.

I started watching F1 after Monaco 2021 but still kimi vs schumi moves give me more excitement then modern ones. Idk man this guy is another level

Cheers Ciaron,that's my treat for a Sunday.Enjoyed that 👍👍

Thanks for a video buddy! Soooo nice to recap this all...

Absolute Master at the wheel of a race car...There will never be another Kimi Raikkonen. All these double/multiple /7 times/wdc, show me one of them that can find a way past so creatively, so cleanly mm from the other car. Thanks again for these clips Ciaron, its important people see this because we may never see such supreme skill ever again.

A lovely morning’s watch 🤩

These look like the perfect cars for him. Were underestimated by other teams but Kimi stole the show with them! Looks like he was enjoying himself a lot as well. Think the racecraft shows that.

White helmet in black car was epic too

Kimi the GOAT!

Was very impressed by Kimi in 2013 when i started watching. He was my 2nd favourite behind Alonso

Kimi is my love since Mclaren Days ❤

2:40 You don’t see many overtakes late on the brakes round the outside of bus stop. Great stuff.

Everytime somebody points to Schumacher or Hamilton because of the amount of championships they won, i immediately point to Kimi because of the amount of skill and pure speed he presented on track like no other. The amount of championships won may make you an amazing driver (i will never take that away from the likes of Hamilton, Vettel or Alonso) but the amount of respect, skill, speed, courage and determination (for example 7:42 proves it. If it were Max, he would have crashed) showed on track is what makes you a legendary driver. A GOAT driver, if you will. And a quick reminder (despite it being a "meme"), this was just a hobby for Kimi. For exmaple, that part with Vettel at 16:19..............i dont really get what Vettel was on. Kimi clearly gave him enough room. I guess Vettel was just salty that Kimi overtook him. Btw, i know Bottas is nowhere near the level of Kimi or even Mika but on what tier level would he be or could have been (overall)?

Yeah ciaron this is the best vid youve uploaded on your channel for a while. Brilliant stuff. I will be coming back every other week to watch this gem It pains me that we dont have any drivers on current grid with this level of racecraft. Very sad. Instead you got verstappen barging into everyone yet being hailed as some sort of GOD just cos he knows how to dominate with the fastest car. You got fools like ocon and stroll aggressively moving late on straights. The driving standards of modern f1 drivers is shocking. Youve got a 7 time world champion whos abysmal to be quite frank in that department too. Every race that guy is getting caught up in some incident. Kimi is really special. To be insanely fast is one thing but to have that finesse and the wheel to wheel racing he posseses asw makes the greatest ever for me.

Always on the edge, never over the edge! Kimi, the one and only...

a genius at wheel to wheel racing

Mega Video Man Thanks

His racecraft overshadowed his qualifying speed these days

His race craft was epic during those years. Shame he probably didn't have that peak speed he had at McLaren which is maybe why in 2012 he had to do a lot of work on Sunday but he was away for 2 years. In 2013 he improved this a lot.

great video

Thanks a alot mate.... You are doing god's work as far as kimi fans like me are concerned. Please upload these to any Google drive or any other platform ad backup as ytbe tends to remove such videos over time... I have another possible Kimi video for you.... Kimi-around the outside - raikkonen.... I haven't seen any driver perform so many around the outside moves as Kimi did. His ability to carry a lot of speed through the corners is not even recognised by many new age fans. Some of the moves he has done around the outside are just absolute insanity... Some of the kimi around the outside moves I've noted On Montoya 2002 Hungary..... On Hamilton 2013 Australia..... On MSC 2012 Brazil..... On Rosberg 2015 Hungary (lap one)..... On Alonso 2021 USA..... On Kobayashi 2012 Australia On Fisichella 2005 Japan..... On Alonso 2021 Austria..... On Ricciardo 2020 Portugal (lap one)..... On Sutil 2012 Hockenheimring..... On Hulkenberg 2012 usa On Magnussen 2020 Nurburgring (into hairpin)..... On Button 2013 Singapore.... On Maldonado 2013 Singapore..... On Schumacer 2004 Spa (going down into eau rouge)... On latifi 2021 Qatar On Hamilton 2018 Monza... Can find a lot more...

Ciaron after watching so many times your videos about Kimi, i really wonder what would happen if Kimi drove W11 for example? Probably the world was not ready to see that kind of speed. I truly respect today's drivers or older drivers like Lewis, Fernando or Seb, but when i see Kimi it seems like a different class of racing. As a fan that doesnt know a lot about F1, i have to admit that drivers like Kimi, Montoya, Michael, Mika were much more enjoyable to watch. However, Kimi is my favourite because of his fairness, his amazing driving style and most importantly his wheel to wheel skills.

His time at Lotus was probably his best in F1. I remember when he was at McLaren (during their Mercedes era) he never seemed to really adapt to their corporate nature. At Ferrari in 2007 he won the WDC, but Ferrari had the momentum from 2006 when they had a strong second half of the season, and the F2007 was genuinely quick. His return to Ferrari and Sauber (he debuted with Sauber before joining McLaren) produced moments but nothing major.

In this two years i always loved the thing, if Kimi passt someone then in the next lap set always the fastest lap if he had clean track. That was the fact, in that Kimi doesnt change after two years off F1. But what happened at Ferrari? Santander and Politic

Really miss him.

"Its more like a hobby for me" -Ice Man

awesome video

Kimi always find ways to unusual overtakes.

Wow. I still get goose bumps watching Kimi's amazing race craft. It's a shame that he couldn't continue his career at Lotus. Something very odd happened to his momentum when he went back to Ferrari.

0:55 A reenactment of 2006 Schumi's pass in Brazil. Except this time Raikkonen learnt the move and had the upper hand

raikkonen v schumacher battles are always exciting

He should have won in bahrain 2012. Its unfortunate he was a bit hesitant against Vettel.

Ladies and Gentlemen This is greatest driver in the history of Formula One 🐐

Kimi deserved to be WC with Lotus and McLaren!

Kimi made very few mistakes in his career that made him a team principal favourite Clean fair racing

The overtake into t1 in monaco was the craziest thing ive seen in my life. 11:38

@2:21 you can see the effect of dirty air on Kimi's violently shaken antenna

This is what Kimi is when the car is up to his style and he can trust his vehicle 100% in any circumstance. Sad Ferrari didn't care enough and put their apples in the baskets of Alonso and Vettel.. Especially in Kimi's latter time in Ferrari..

Kimi watching this video: bwoah, I was just having some fun.

3:05 that pass on Maldonado while Hamilton rammed him and afterwards Maldonado was the crashing goat.

kimis style is giving doubt to the other drivers, as you can see clearly he shows up inside or outside for the other driver to back off or they both will crash. kimi will always push for a pass where he can use that to his addvatage. they know his character and persona, finnish sisu!

Colin Chapman would have been proud

Kimi + Lotus = Demon racer

He nearly bankrupt them with how many points he won ,what an awesome run it was.

I think Kimi did his best with a skittish car!

love it when kimi puts manners on humbilton

Actual hard racing. None of this running other drivers off the road nonsense.

What's the background music in the beginning of the video?

He came back from a break in F1 to demonstrate his mastery. Grosjean was also good it the Renault at the time. They had their shìt figured out at the time.

Still so funny to me that Lotus almost went bankrupt cause Kimi had a contract he got a Bonus for every point he scored back then. LMAO

Kimi always seems to have Massa's number, wish Lotus had the funds Redbull had at that time to develop their cars more, Kimi could've been a title contender.

Kimi the best!!❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Even when hes retired we still cant leave him alone. We miss you on the track Kimi!

The scariest one was racing against Maldonado...he was not as skilled as most of the other drivers...Schumacher seemed to always respect Kimi...he knew Kimi had the speed, and Schumacher's battles with Mika Hakkinen probably made him respect Kimi........

„Around the outside of Maldonado“ says it all.

you give Kimi a car with a stiff front end and he's the best driver ever.

It's nice seeing Massa get schooled by Kimi after Ferrari prioritised Massa while they were teammates. Karma.

Decent times by Kimi with the second best of the grid. Not bad at all!

KING KIMI 👑👑👑👑👑👑👑

Kimi’s contemporaries: Schumacher, Alonso, Hamilton, Vettel, Hakkinen, Verstappen… That he’s even got one title is impressive.

A király

Wow. He even overtook Kobayashi 😮😮😮

Why does that Kimis passing in 13.03 of toro rosso, where that curve was closing, why it looked like toro rosso stop for coffee when kimi was aside him? Or is toro rosso simply braking so much earlier? Why? Avoiding collition, or was kimi just that much faster in that corner?? Can somebody share your toughts?

😳 @ 16:15 versus Vettel. Simply amazing, that was against a 4x champion in his prime!

Remember, Kimi Finished 3rd in the championship in 2012

Some good moves vs Schumacher

Guys I have 100 point question for you! On that first Brazilian GP clip. That exactly same race and same first corner fight between Kimi and Michael. Let's go back to 2002-2006 seasons. They had identical fight with Michael on Ferrari and Kimi on McLaren. I still remember Kimi was outside and Michael overtook him inside and they was fighting like 4th position or smthing. So my guestion is what year race that was :D I was hella young kid back then but nowadays still remember it and still getting instantly flash back to good old times :3

What's your opinion on his 2nd stint at Ferrari, and why couldn't he keep up with Vettel? I mean I believe Vettel is faster but not that much faster. What happened?

3:16 so that’s where Hulkenberg learned it from!

He should've never returned to Ferrari in 2014. That move didn't make any sense, and I still wonder why to this day...

1:19:19 at monza 2018.. He was not slow, just hindered by Ferrari politics. He could propably have had 2nd title @ Ferrari, if sebastian was not given.. how to say it, all the team effort.

With these moves Kimi would have ended up on the wall or gravel if those drives were Max Verstappen

8:11

Formula 1 has lost two irreplaceable things Kimi and good sounding engines