GP – Is Ferrari soaring towards a 3rd triumph in Turkey?

Even with his domination during free practice 2, the reigning world champion, Kimi Räikkönen, is far from satisfied with his Friday.

« It was not the Friday we had imagined, » said Räikkönen, who finished 20th in the morning after a gearbox problem.

This morning, I didn’t even manage to complete a timed lap because of the gearbox. Consequently, I couldn’t go back out before the end of the session. In the afternoon, I still had a bit of trouble finding the right settings on the car.

« One of the main problems today was the tires, which were never at the right temperature, but I think tomorrow this issue will fade. The track should improve, allowing us to work on the setup of the car; it will be a different situation. »

We lost precious time this morning, but we have enough data so that we can be ready to fight this weekend.

Räikkönen is the leader in the championship with a nine-point lead over Hamilton after the first four races of the season. The Finn finished ahead of the Briton in the second free practice with only a 0.036-second advantage.

His teammate, Felipe Massa, who won the last two editions of this Turkish Grand Prix, was the fastest in the morning but recorded the third fastest time this afternoon.

« The track was very fast even though it was still a bit dirty, which means that today it was very easy to make mistakes. With these very cool temperatures, getting the best out of the tires on a timed lap proved complicated. »

« We tried different settings. For now, it is about examining the data of everything we have accomplished over these three hours of testing to be as well prepared as possible. »

« I am comfortable on this track and I think I can be very competitive tomorrow and Sunday in the race. It would be fantastic to win here once again after my victories in 2006 and 2007, » concluded the Brazilian.