Kovalainen: I can beat Hamilton in 2009

After admitting that he was not satisfied with his first year with McLaren-Mercedes, Heikki Kovalainen says he is ready to raise his level and become a serious challenger to Lewis Hamilton next season while remaining his teammate.

The Finn started the 2008 campaign with good performances, especially during qualifying. However, he lost his edge in the second half of the year when McLaren was officially fighting for both titles.

In spite of his victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix, he admits that things are far from ideal. However, he knows what he has to do next season to address the issue.

« I am clearly not satisfied with most of my results, » said Kovalainen at the Mercedes-Benz Stars & Cars in Stuttgart.

« I think I didn’t make any big mistakes, but the season was very difficult.

« We haven’t finished all the races. These are minor technical issues that prevented me from achieving good results. I think I will be much better prepared for next year. Let’s hope we can finish more races without any problems and achieve better results. »

It is understood that Kovalainen will need to improve his performance in 2009 if he wants to keep his seat beyond the end of the season. McLaren Mercedes is considering other options such as Robert Kubica.

« This year, the potential was there to achieve much better results. In terms of pace, there was never a problem. »

« If you look at some of the qualifying sessions this year, the speed itself is quite satisfactory. I think we just need to keep working on the details. So, to answer your question, yes, I think I can have a much better season in 2009. »