Brazilian Grand Prix FIA winners' press conference transcript with
1. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari), 1h28m15.270s
2. Felipe Massa (Ferrari), 1h28m16.763s
3. Fernando Alonso (McLaren Mercedes), 1h29m12.289s
Q: It wasn't so long ago this season that you were saying really the
chance has gone to win this championship and today, magically perhaps,
it's all come right.
Kimi Raikkonen: I don't remember that I was saying that. I think
maybe somebody else was saying it, but for sure we were not in the
strongest position at some points of the season, but we always believed
that we can recover, we can do a better job than the others and even
in the hard times everybody was sticking together and we didn't give
up. It was good because as we saw in the end, even from a long way
behind, we could reduce the gap and go ahead and win the championship,
not just Constructors but also Drivers and I need to thank the team,
they did a great job not just today but all year. Like I said, we had
some hard time with some problems but we always work hard and improve
the situation and I think we had a perfect teamwork, Felipe helping
all the time also. We had a hard fight with him all year but then he
unfortunately didn't score and he couldn't be in the fight any more, so
he's been a big help also, and also the sponsors have been a big bonus
for us. The team is very close, they've been doing a great job for us,
improving the fuel and everything to help us with the new regulations,
so for sure I'm going to enjoy today and probably the next month, but
I'm very happy.
Q: But it was a beautifully clean race for you, a great race for the
team as well, following Felipe, passing Lewis Hamilton into the first
corner and then taking the lead in the second phase of pit stops.
Kimi Raikkonen: I got a very good start actually, side-by-side with Felipe but we
didn't really want to race against each other too hard and the main
thing was to get past Hamilton and then I saw his in the mirrors in the
corner and I think he went off and I thought that maybe we had some
chance now. We had very good speed in both cars. We were just taking it
easy, saving the tyres and the cars. We could have gone much faster if
we wanted to. It was perfect teamwork from the team and it paid off very
well. It's not only been in this race but the whole year, so thanks to
everybody.
Q: You're known as the Iceman but what was it like in the closing stages
of the race, presumably your team saying 'Kimi, stay where you are,
you're going to be World Champion.' What was going through your mind?
Kimi Raikkonen: Not much really, I wasn't really 100 percent sure because we weren't
sure if somebody needed to stop in front of Lewis. He was seventh then
even he had finished and I finished the race but there were people who
needed to finish and we didn't know 100 percent, so I was just really
waiting and it took a long time to hear that we finally won it and it's
amazing, after the last few races, being up and down and we scored good
points even in difficult situations, so it's been a good finish of the
season and great work from everybody and I'm very happy, it was an
amazing day.
Q: Felipe, well done to you, a brilliant team performance by Ferrari,
you could have won that race, you had the pace to do it, a great pole
position; your thoughts at this moment.
Felipe Massa: For sure, I'm very happy with the team.
Unfortunately, I didn't come here fighting for the championship for
so many reasons, especially because of some difficult times I've had
this year but I'm very happy for the team. It's good to see the Ferrari
team who trusted me winning the championship and I'm very glad to help
the team to win the championship. One day I hope it can be with me but
I'm happy for Kimi. For sure I need to say thanks to the whole team
who worked very hard, even during the difficult times when we were
criticised because the reliability was not good enough, but in the end,
it was good to see the team champions. Also with all the problems we
had this year with the spy story, so I think it's a good way to show
and to do a good job and win the championship. I also need to thank, as
Kimi did, the sponsors who worked very hard, like Shell, like all the
sponsors we have, so it was a fantastic day for them. For sure, I feel
very happy for the team, for Kimi. Unfortunately, I wanted to win the
race in Brazil but I'm happy to help the team to win the championships.
Q: In fact there were some question marks before the race about the
track surface, about the super soft tyres; in the closing stages, what
were the conditions like?
Felipe Massa: I think the track improved a lot from yesterday to today, so the
track made a big improvement. In the end the super soft worked very well
at the end of the race. Everybody expected to be in trouble with the
super soft but in the end it was working very well. I also need to say
that Bridgestone did a good job because everybody was saying that it was
too risky to bring the super soft, but in the end it worked, so it was
also good for them.
Q: Fernando, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes led the Drivers' Championship
from the second race until the last race, but it wasn't to be. A good
start, you passed your team-mate Lewis Hamilton out of the first corner
and then couldn't keep the pace with the Ferraris.
Fernando Alonso: Yeah, first of all congratulations to Kimi.
I said many times, the man who has more points at the last race
deserves the championship, so in this case, I think Kimi did a great
championship, as he said, up and down for everybody but now, on the
last day, he deserves it, so congratulations to him. The race itself,
I knew it was going to be very difficult and not only because I had to
take four or five points to Lewis but also because with the problem for
Lewis in the race, I knew that Ferrari could finish one and two and that
was not enough for me. So I tried at the start, I had a good start and
I managed to be third and then, as you said, it was impossible to keep
the pace with the Ferraris, so I was waiting for something to happen to
them.
Q: Where were they quicker than you?
Fernando Alonso: I don't know. I think the first two or three laps I was keeping
the pace with them, so I was extremely optimistic at that point on lap
three, because I was hoping that the pace was just that. Obviously, they
were probably taking care of their tyres in the first couple of laps,
and then when they pushed, I was not able to keep the pace, but you
never know, it was the same in the China, and anything can happen, so
I was keeping the pace there, the third position with fingers crossed
that maybe one of the Ferraris has a problem or something and I can take
second place but it didn't happen at the end, so nothing I could do.
Q: Fernando, you won two World Championships, a turbulent year with
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes; some thoughts from you on that season with
McLaren and the job they've done for you?
Fernando Alonso: Well, I think at the end, you have ups and downs. You have better
moments and worse moments and I think, as you said, this year I had some
difficulties with the team, it's not a secret, but at the end, we try
to work together as hard as we could and we arrived at the last race
fighting for the championship and we finished third in the Drivers'
Championship, one point behind the World Championship, so I think at the
end, I had a fantastic car, a very competitive car, great sponsors in
the team and even if we have had a tough season, I've had great memories
from this season: four victories, I think, and I feel comfortable.
Q: Kimi, it is beginning to sink in now no doubt, your 15th win, perhaps
you could reflect on your career a little bit, where you've come from
in Finland, the struggle to get here and what it means to win the World
Championship.
Kimi Raikkonen: I think it's very difficult to put it into words, but for sure,
it wasn't the best place to start in racing. I came from pretty much
nothing, but the family put in a lot of effort always, our friends, our
cousins and all the sponsors in the beginning helped us to get here but
it was a long time ago. I've had great people behind me, great managers
to help me here and the teams that I've driven for have got close to
the championship a few times but I have never been able to really be
there at the right moment. This year it looked like it was getting away
again, but we have a great team, so we put everything together and just
believed in ourselves and worked. Probably nobody else was thinking
about us anymore but we knew that we still had a chance, so I need to
give a bit of thanks to the team. I love the team, I have such a good
time with the team, I enjoy Formula One much more now than last year.
I have much better feelings from this year than any other year, so I
must say to all the people who have been helping me: thanks to them. For
sure, there have been hard times in the career, but that's normal for
everybody and this is what I've always wanted and I've got it now so
anything that comes after this can only be a plus. We're just going to
go next year and try to do it again. It's going to be difficult but we
will see what we can do.
Q: Well done Kimi, at the start of the season, could you have imagined
that, even this morning?
Kimi Raikkonen: The start of the season was good! We were in the same position as
we finished, so it was good, but for sure, we had some hard times, we
had some reliability problems and we lost quite a lot of points. At one
point, people were saying that we weren't in the championship anymore,
but we showed them that they were wrong. We were able to come back and
we came back strongly in the end, and it was great teamwork from all the
people, from Felipe and the guys on the team, so it was a great season.
Q: What were your feelings this morning when you came in?
Kimi Raikkonen: For sure it was really like any other race for me. There were some
people who said for sure I was going to win but I didn't take them too
seriously really. There were so many things that needed to go our way
today but it all really happened on the first lap. We made a good start
and certain things went in our direction and then after that we had a
very good car, we were able to keep the pace as we wanted and try to
just make sure we were one and two and hope that the rest went right for
us.
Q: I guess it was vital to overtake Lewis at the start.
Kimi Raikkonen: It was. I expected to get past him at the start. We've had a very
good start system since maybe the third or fourth race this year. I
almost got into first place but we didn't want to take too much risk
between me and Felipe, so it was most important to get in front of Lewis
and that worked out well, and then we just tried to do the best that we
can.
Q: And really the pace of the Ferraris today was phenomenal.
Kimi Raikkonen: Yeah, but if we want to go faster we probably could have gone a
second faster, so the pace was there all the time. The car was great,
the tyres worked very well even though there were some question marks
whether they were going to last but for us the car was very good.
Q: And of course your pace as well when Felipe went for the second stop,
you had a couple of laps extra.
Kimi Raikkonen: Of course, yes, that was a crucial moment but like I said, we had it
planned, we knew what we wanted to do as a team. We had a clear picture
of that, so we were not really racing against each other, so a big
thanks to the team, a big thanks to Felipe. That's what we needed and
that's what we got.
Q: And what were you shouting on the radio on the slowing down lap?
Kimi Raikkonen: Not really shouting too much, just thanking the team, waiting to get
the confirmation whether we won or not. A really great feeling, it's
been many years... two times quite close but it never really happened
and this year was looking like it was going to be one of those again
but it was a good job by us to come back and we did it in the end. For
sure, I know that this hurts for Lewis, because you've been working for
a whole year and then when you lose it, it's not a nice feeling and it's
a long time before you can try to win it again or even get close. You
never know. You try to take it when it comes and it worked well for us
this year. It was close but then that's how it should be and we won in
the end.
Q: Just one point...
Kimi Raikkonen: Yeah, I lost it a couple of years ago by two points. Luckily we were
on the right side this time, but it's a great year for everybody, I
think. For sure there has been a lot of different talk about the whole
situation between teams and drivers, but I think that has only made it
more exciting for everybody, so sometimes it's good for the sport and
for sure much more fun.
Q: Felipe, in a way a difficult race for you because you knew what you
had to do, I guess.
Felipe Massa: Yeah, for sure we had everything to win the race today. The car was
phenomenal, the team did a fantastic job, but I think it was pretty
clear that the team was fighting for the championship and it was not
going to be me who would stop that, so I was playing the game for sure,
and trying to help the team if possible. We were talking beforehand that
the only way for Kimi to win the championship was that Lewis should
have to be out of the top six and if he was out of the top six and the
team needed my support, I would be very happy to help and that's what
I did. When I started my career, Ferrari was a team that gave me all
the support I needed, who put me in other teams, who helped me, who
taught me, so for sure I was very proud to help the team to win the
championship, especially to see all the hard work the team has done.
I would loved to have arrived here fighting for the championship but
unfortunately this year we had some ups and downs which didn't allow me
to come here with the chance to fight for the championship but hopefully
one day I can come here and fight for the championship and have the same
feeling as Kimi, but I'm happy for him, I'm happy for the team and it
was a fantastic job for everybody.
Q: I think your compatriots' hearts must have skipped a beat on lap 44
when you had a bit of a moment down at the bottom there.
Felipe Massa: I think there was maybe some oil there because I didn't brake so
late and I didn't have any grip and I just went onto the dirty side, so
I lost important time, but for sure it was not a problem that changed
the championship, so I was able to help the team, so it didn't affect
the team in the end.
Q: Fernando, a year ago we were congratulating you on winning the
championship and the year before that too...
Fernando Alonso: Yes, but not today...So, you know. I knew it was difficult for me.
My chances were not very high because I was hoping for a problem or
something wrong in his race and I had to avoid a one-two for Ferrari. I
tried to do my best all through the race and keep a constant pace and
being third was as close as I could get to the two Ferraris and hoping
something would go wrong in one of these cars and I would get second and
second was enough for me today, but there was not much more I could do.
Q: You didn't seem to have the pace to take the fight to Ferrari?
Fernando Alonso: Absolutely not in the race, in the first two laps I was quite
optimistic because I was running behind them quite easily and I thought
maybe it was the pace of the race, but probably they were taking care of
their tyres or whatever and when they pushed hard it was impossible for
me to follow anymore.
Q: And the tyres, were they good or not?
Fernando Alonso: I had big problems with the tyres, but I think everybody did today.
We knew the race was going to be extremely risky from the tyres' point
of view with the soft especially and we realise now that the most
problematic tyre was the prime with a lot of blisters and made the tyre
vibrate quite high a lot from lap five or six. So it was not too safe
but we chose to do two stops and maybe that didn't help the tyres but it
was a good strategy to fight for third. Nothing we can do -- it is the
same for everybody.
Q: Kimi, I feel great and I can see that you feel great, very great. Do
you feel even greater if Marcus wins the world rally title?
Kimi Raikkonen: Good for him, good for Finland, yes, but nothing changes in my life,
so I am happy for him if he wins and it will be hard for him. But I am
going to enjoy my own victory now as the world champion, so we will see
what happens in the other races. I am not too interested in that now.
Q: How much did the team tell you about the positions of Lewis and
Fernando during the race and how much did you think about the points
during the race?
Kimi Raikkonen: Actually, I saw it on the first lap when Lewis went off and I think
at the third corner I saw that Fernando got past him and then in corner
four Lewis went off. So I knew he had hurt his chances for a podium at
that point, but they were telling me about his problem or something
that had happened so, from that point, we knew we had a better chance
now than we had had for many races. For sure, I knew what was happening
behind me but I knew we needed just to make our own race and try to be
one and two and then it was not up to us, just what was going to happen,
so it was the main thing just to go the whole way.
Q: Fernando, we have not heard from you what happened on that opening
lap?
Fernando Alonso: I had a very good start, similar to Kimi and we both arrived quite
close to Lewis in the first corner and Kimi managed to overtake him and
we were side by side in corner two, so I overtook him there, but he
took the slipstream in the long straight, so I covered myself with my
position and I think he braked too late on the outside and he missed
the corner. After that, I saw the pit board Hamilton P18, so I asked on
the radio what is going on and they said he had a gearbox problem after
that. So, from that point on, my goal was to avoid the two Ferraris, but
it was not possible.
Q: For both Ferrari drivers. Do you think that after the Spy Story there
is some kind of justice in this final result?
Kimi Raikkonen: I think so, maybe, yes. It is so difficult to say. It is such a
complicated situation. And I think that it has now been decided and
we should put it behind us and there is no point in thinking about it
anymore. It's a different story from racing, so it is not a nice thing.
Unfortunately it was a big thing this year and so let's hope it doesn't
happen again in future.
Felipe Massa: I think it is another victory for us. It was a big story which was
involving many things during the whole season, many negative things and
I think this is a very positive thing that we won on the track and also
that we beat the problems that we had and it is a good feeling for the
team.
Q: Kimi, tell us about your feelings as a champion? Are you going to
dance the samba tonight?
Kimi Raikkonen: I don't know about dancing. I am not going to be in condition for
dancing. We will just see what happens tonight -- for sure we are going
to have a big party, not just tonight but next week and I felt great
after the race, a good feeling, but it has been a long season and it is
hard to realise that we finally did it after many years and in my first
year here at Ferrari and because it has been not in our minds to be a
world champion because it seemed so far away, but we managed to come
back and win it. So it is hard to believe that it happened. I feel great
but it will take a little time to have the real feeling.
Q: Fernando, I would you talk about your season and your team...
Fernando Alonso: Well, this season has been positive in a general view because I
moved from Renault after winning the last two Constructors' and Drivers'
Championships, 2005 and 2006, and I moved to McLaren with some doubts
because 2006 was not a great season for McLaren. So when I moved, with
doubts, but the team did a fantastic job to have a competitive car in
2007 and so I was able to fight until the last race to win the world
championship and I finished one point behind the champion. So in that
aspect I think it has been a very positive season. Outside the car for
sure we have had some difficulties this year, but I think this is normal
in all jobs and you have ups and downs, better moments and then worse
moments, and as I said, I will have great memories of this year from my
four victories I had in important places, where I had not won before,
like Monza, and Monaco again for a second time. So, as I said, I will
have great memories from this season.
Q: Kimi, you have a reputation for being an unlucky driver, but today a
lot happened and you won the championship?
Kimi Raikkonen: I don't know. I never said I am really unlucky. I don't believe in
luck too much -- it is down to hard work and sometimes you do things
wrong and sometimes you have problems, but today we needed help from
the others and it turned out to be good for us. Sometimes this year we
have had hard times in the races when we have been leading and something
has gone wrong. But today everything went right and worked out for us
beautifully. I don't know if it is luck or whatever but I take it. It
was good and that is the main thing.
Q: In your first season with Ferrari you have won the championship --
only Fangio has done this before. How do you feel to be compared to this
great champion? And how is your feeling to see McLaren beaten in the
last race, the team you were with for five years?
Kimi Raikkonen: Like I said before, I enjoyed every moment with the team. I enjoy
Formula One more this year than the last few years for many reasons,
but not because of the driving -- for other reasons. And I am more than
happy to win the championship with Ferrari, especially the first year
with the team has been a great year overcoming all difficulties and
giving me such a nice big family and great people to work with -- and I
would rather win with them than with anybody else.
Q: Kimi, how do you see yourself coping with the increased media demands
of being an ambassador for the sport and world champion?
Kimi Raikkonen: For sure, I will have more appearances and it is not going to really
change my life too much and people will probably look differently at
me and make more stories about me and my stuff, but I am not going to
change myself. I never have before and I don't know what is going to
happen in the future. So I will have to be more careful whatever I do.
So we will see what happens. Maybe you should ask Fernando because he
can tell -- he won it before and he can say if he changed a lot or not.
I am not going to worry about it and I am going to lead my life as I
want and that's it.
Q: Alonso, will this result interfere with your future?
Fernando Alonso: No. Nothing has changed.
Q: Kimi, what was the best of your six victories?
Kimi Raikkonen: It is very difficult to say which is the best. For sure, this was
the most important. We won the championship with this one-two for the
team, so if you look at what is most important, ok, every race, every
win is important, but this one when it decides everything is the best I
would say. It is hard to compare wins, when you win it is nice but this
brings more out of you because we won the championship and not just one
race.
Q: Fernando, do you believe your team would support you more to win the
championship for McLaren?
Fernando Alonso: I don't know. I think it is difficult to know, or easy to know, when
you lose a championship. It was not today. We arrived here with only a
three points' advantage with Kimi and it was not enough because we had
a great opportunity to open this gap with the mechanical problems he
had in some races. And I think we lost a lot of points in Canada with
a seventh place, I had a mistake in Japan and I didn't finish the race
in the wet. So one or two points in some of those races and it would
have changed the picture completely. From the team I am very convinced
they tried to give the same cars for both drivers, the correct approach,
and you never know, a few points more to one driver and we won the
championship now and not be second and third.
-credit: fia
