NEW YORK, 16 June 2005 — Kimi Raikkonen is perfectly placed to take another chunk out of Renault rival Fernando Alonso’s championship lead at Indianapolis on Sunday.
The McLaren driver’s victory in Canada last weekend, after Alonso hit the wall and retired while leading, allowed Raikkonen to slash the Spaniard’s advantage to 22 points with 11 races remaining.
The Finnish ‘Iceman’ will now have the prime slot in qualifying while Formula One pacesetter Alonso has the disadvantage of running early as a result of his rare error.
“I think Indy should suit our car better than this place,” Raikkonen said after coming from seventh on the starting grid in Montreal to take his third win in four races as others fell like ninepins.
“So I think we should be stronger there than here. “I think we were pretty strong in the race here anyhow, and hopefully we can get both cars to the finish ... And try to catch up more on the Renaults.” Alonso, winner of half of the eight races so far, has a pitiful record at Indianapolis. In three visits to ‘The Brickyard’, he has yet to reach the finish.
