Crash.net Top Ten F1 2009 Driver Vote: Number 7
If 2009 proves to be the final season in F1 for Kimi Raikkonen, then its safe to say that things didn't go quite as planned for the former champion.
With Ferrari's F60 performing below expectations, Raikkonen struggled at the start of the season and failed to score a point until the fourth round of the year when he took sixth place in Bahrain. A podium finish arrived in Monaco, but by the British Grand Prix in June, Raikkonen had just 10 points on the board.
Felipe Massa's accident in Hungary left Raikkonen to lead the Scuderia through the second half of the year and he stepped up to the plate despite Ferrari electing to end development on its 2009 car.
Second in Hungary was followed by third in Valencia and victory at Spa, where he made the most of the Ferrari KERS system to take his - and the team's - only win of the year.
Another podium followed in Italy when Raikkonen took third place and he won widespread praise for the way in which he conducted himself when it became apparent that Ferrari was to release the Finn from his contract early to bring in Fernando Alonso for 2010.
Raikkonen now leaves the F1 paddock to head to the World Rally Championship in 2010, but does so having been voted seventh in your poll for the top driver of the 2009 season.
Statistics:
Championship finish: 6th
Starts: 17
Victories: 1
Pole positions: 0
Fastest laps: 0
Podiums: 5
Points: 48
Points finishes: 9
Top ten grid positions: 14
