Finnish f1 driver

In the season, Raikkonen left both Scuderia Ferrari and the sport, and return in driving for Lotus. In September , Ferrari re-signed Kimi on a two-year contract beginning in the season and subsequently was extended till the season.

During this time, he finished among the top four overall in the championship on multiple occasions during his second Ferrari stint, finishing his total eight-year-long Ferrari career with a third place in the championship. In after the contract ended, Kimi moved to Alfa Romeo Racing and will drive for them till the end of Kimi has been an active user on various social media platforms.

On Instagram, he goes by the username kimimatiasraikkonen and is a verified user with 2. So what is the secret of the Finns' continued success? It's hard to answer this question without wading perilously deep into the waters of generalisation, but it does seem that the archetypal Finnish traits of fortitude and resilience have much to do with it. The Finns have a word for this national characteristic - Sisu - a catch-all term dating back hundreds of years that, according to Finlandia University, external-link describes "strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity".

They add: "Sisu is not momentary courage, but the ability to sustain that courage. It is a word that cannot be fully translated. It defines the Finnish people and their character. It stands for the philosophy that what must be done will be done, regardless of cost. That's pretty high-brow stuff. Can a shared national trait really lead to sustained success at the pinnacle of world motorsport? Instead, there is a more simple explanation - and who better than the straight-talking Raikkonen to give it.

Asked what makes Finnish drivers so good, he once replied: "Our roads and long winters. It is always slippery and bumpy. Ah, that must be it. Hakkinen's pass on Michael Schumacher at the Belgian Grand Prix - executed as the pair went either side of backmarker Ricardo Zonta - is widely regarded as one of the most thrilling overtakes in F1 history. Reigning world champion Nico Rosberg certainly seems to think so, if this tweet from last year external-link is anything to go by.

For anyone wondering, Rosberg - son of Keke - does not make this feature as he was born in Germany, has a German mother and raced under the German flag in F1. So there. Finland has done incredibly well to produce a decent amount of successful Formula 1 drivers considering the size of their talent pool relative to other countries.

In fact, they boast more F1 world champions per capita than any other country. The population of Finland is just 5. They do.

Finnish F1 drivers are treated like rock stars, although motorsport is not quite the most popular sport in Finland. That crown belongs to pesapallo - Finnish baseball.

They also love a bit of bandy, a sport that can be best described as being a bit like ice hockey. If you are viewing this page on the BBC News app please click here to vote. Bottas told 5 live his greatest Finnish driver was Mika Hakkinen. During qualifying for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone he took his Williams to the absolute edge of adhesion, defied physics and posted a mph average lap — a true lap of the gods.

Wins: Poles: Fastest laps: Championships: Two — , Teams: Lotus, McLaren. Cool, calm and likeable with a dry sense of humour, he took two consecutive titles in and , and came close to a hat-trick in No question, F1 is a mind game.

Career highlight: That overtake at Spa Francorchamps. In a jaw-dropping feat of overtaking, the Finn followed Schumacher on the long Kemmel Straight and at nearly mph, used the lapped car of Ricardo Zonta to box Schumacher out wide and pass both cars. But halfway through the race he did leave a small gap between tyres. Championships: One — Career span: — present.

Leo Kinnunen. Kinnunen won the Nordic Challenge Cup in , the Interserie from —, and helped Porsche to take the World Sportscar Championship for manufacturers in drivers championships were not awarded until In , he switched to Formula One, but in addition to the problems with the underpowered Surtees TS16, his team soon ran into financial problems.

He was the last driver to compete in Formula One using an open-face helmet. Linda Brava. Linda Cullberg Lampenius, better known by her maiden name Linda Lampenius and international stage name Linda Brava, born 26 February is a Finnish classical concert violinist. Named as one of the most versatile and accomplished players of her generation, Brava has also performed pop, rock, folk, techno, film, jazz, and world music, among others.

Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship in and The next year he again placed second, In , he was the world champion for eleven days, until Peugeot's appeal went through and He was the series champion after winning the final round at Road Atlanta. His international racing career has been volatile due to a number of injuries he has sustained during his career. He was the and Formula One World Champion, driving for McLaren and has been ranked among the greatest Formula One drivers in various motorsport polls.

Mika Salo. Mika Juhani Salo born 30 November is a Finnish former professional racing driver. He competed in Formula One between and His best ranking was 10th in the world championship in , when he stood in for the injured Michael Schumacher at Ferrari for six races, scoring two podiums. Mikko Hirvonen. He placed third in the drivers' championship and helped Ford to the manufacturers' title in both and Hirvonen's co-driver was Jarmo Lehtinen from the season until his retirement in , Lehtinen had replaced Miikka Anttila who co-drove with Hirvonen in the season.