Boullier autosportille:
Kimi Raikkonen is only 192 laps into his Formula 1 comeback with Lotus, but the Enstone outfit's chief, Eric Boullier, reckons that the 2007 world champion has already shown his true colours. Kimi is fast, we knew that, but he has also proved that he is capable of being the leader that every Formula 1 team needs.
For Lotus (nee Renault), Raikkonen's return is timely indeed. There was a time when it had an iron man in the cockpit in the form of Robert Kubica, a driver who imposed his personality on the team and left no one in any doubt as to what he wanted... and demanded. He wasn't necessarily the most easy-going to work with, but he was loved by the team because he did the job behind the wheel and left no stone unturned in the pursuit of results. For a team that felt the absence of that kind of leadership so keenly in 2011, Raikkonen's arrival has been embraced.