Kimi Räikkönen: “We hope to be able to score points in Mexico City”

Kimi Räikkönen feels the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN team have been close to scoring points in the last couple of races, and he hopes to make that next step and break into the top ten in the Mexico City Grand Prix this weekend.

Räikkönen, who will retire from Formula 1 at the end of the season, says it will be important for Alfa Romeo to get everything right across the whole weekend if they are to be a genuine top ten contender on Sunday afternoon.

However, the Finn knows the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is a tricky one to get right and an easy one to make a mistake on, particularly with how slippery it can be.

“We hope to be able to score points in Mexico City: we went really close in the last couple of races so our pace should allow us to be in the fight but, as always, it will be a matter of getting everything right across the weekend,” said Räikkönen.  

“This is a very slippery track and it’s easy to make mistakes, especially in qualifying, but it’s really rewarding when you put a lap together.

“Saturday will be important – there are overtaking opportunities after the long straights, but elsewhere it’s really hard to pass as the track gets narrow and twisty in the middle sector.”

“The spirit of the team is still really strong” – Antonio Giovinazzi

Team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi feels Alfa Romeo have the potential to score points in each of the next three races in Mexico, Brazil and Qatar, and to do so would reward the whole team for the hard work they’ve been putting in this season.

Giovinazzi, who’s seat at the team for the 2022 season remains under threat, says the teams spirit is still ‘really strong’ despite a lack of top ten finishes this season, with the Italian having scored only one point in the opening seventeen races of 2021.

“It’s great to come back to Mexico, it’s one of those venues where the crowd really makes itself part of the show,” said Giovinazzi.  “In this regards, it feels like being in Italy and that gives me a lot of energy for the race weekend.

“We have three races in three weeks, three more chances to score points: we have been getting closer with each race, so hopefully this is the time we bring home the reward our work deserves.

“The spirit of the team is still really strong and we’re all pushing in the same direction, and we will do that until the very last corner in Abu Dhabi.”

Antonio Giovinazzi hopes the next three races offer three chances of points for Alfa Romeo – Credit: Antonin Vincent / DPPI