Raikkonen: F1 race in Finland just a money problem

Kimi Raikkonen says Formula 1 would head to Finland instantly “if somebody puts the money down” to cover the cost of hosting the sport, following the construction of the new KymiRing circuit.

With MotoGP welcoming the return of the Finnish round for the first time since 1982, the national motorsport governing body AKK Motorsport has investigated the feasibility of hosting F1 in the future.

Raikkonen: F1 race in Finland just a money problem

Kimi Raikkonen says Formula 1 would head to Finland instantly “if somebody puts the money down” to cover the cost of hosting the sport, following the construction of the new KymiRing circuit.

With MotoGP welcoming the return of the Finnish round for the first time since 1982, the national motorsport governing body AKK Motorsport has investigated the feasibility of hosting F1 in the future.

Finland remains the most high-profile nation in F1 to never host the sport despite producing four world champions plus 50 Grand Prix wins.

Raikkonen, Finland’s most recent F1 world champion, supports the idea to bring the sport to his home nation and feels the only major stumbling block remains financing a race regardless of where the event would be held.

Having seen the recent MotoGP test at the newly constructed KymiRing track, which joins the race calendar in 2020 subject to FIM homologation, Raikkonen would be thrilled to see F1 head to Finland in the future.

“I have seen videos of the bikes going around there [KymiRing],” Raikkonen said. “I always said, many years ago, I’m sure we could race in the middle of Helsinki if somebody puts the money down and does it. That’s the only issue.

“I don’t know if we have a track that is homologated for F1 yet but it’s for the bikes for sure, so it must be safe in many areas.

“For sure it’s possible, it’s just a matter of somebody taking care of the cost. If that happens it’s great.”

The F1 calendar expands to 22 races for 2020 with the addition of the new Vietnamese round and the return of the Dutch Grand Prix. The German Grand Prix has dropped off next year’s F1 calendar due to a lack of funding.

MotoGP, KymiRing, Finland MotoGP,
MotoGP, KymiRing, Finland MotoGP,
© MotoGP

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