Kimi Raikkonen WRC Spain 2010: A Tough Lesson in Rallying

Photo by randomwinner on Pixabay

The last Ferrari champion, still today, Kimi Raikkonen stepped awaay from F1 at the end of 2009, he surprised many by driving into the WRC in 2010.

Its normally hard to move from smooth circuits of F1 to the rough, unpredictable rally stages was no small feat.

However, this sport (WRC) demands a very differenc approach, drivers must rely heavily on their co-drivers pace notes and adapt to constantly changin terrain.

Transitioning from F1 to Rally

It was very challenging for Kimi Raikkonen to adapt in Rallying. he faced a steep learning curve, often finding himself off the road or spinning, which is quite normal for someone new to WRC.

Despite this, he showed his trademark calmness, we all know how Kimi is, COLD, gradually he was getting more comfortable.

The dramatic crash at – Rally Spain 2010

The crash in Spain was the most talked moment from his rookie rally season, in October 2010.

The shakedown is like a test run before the actual competition, where drivers try to find the best car setup and get a feel for the track conditions.

During that session, Raikkonen was pushing his Citroen C4 WRC really hard, approaching a tricky corner near Salou, he clipped the bank and the car flipped over, landing upside down.

The impct was strong enough to bend the car’s roll cage, a critical safety component.

Both Raikkonen and his co-driver Kaj Lindstrom walked away without injuries, showing that modern rally safety is great.

Kimi’s reaction

Kimi summed up the incident in his usual straightforward way:

“I touched the bank a little bit, the car jumped on the roof and hit the bank. It bent the roll cage and that’s it. The rules say we can’t start, so there’s nothing we can do.”

Not much drama, as we know Kimi, his reaction showed how Kimi approached setbacks with a practical mindsed and accepted it.

The car after the crash

The car couldn’t be repaired by the team, forcing Kimi to withdraw before the first competitive stage, while disappointing, this incident was part of his learning process in rallying.

However, he kept pushing forward and he did continue to compete in WRC events in 2010 and 2011, then in the late of ’11 he announced that he will come back in F1 for 2012.

The crash in Spain remains a vivid example of how rallying can humble even the best drivers.

What more about it?

That incident back in the day, was tough moment but also valuable lesson for the Finn, it showed the challenges involved in switching disciplines and the importance of learning from mistakes.

He handled it with the cool headedness fans know him for, proving once again why he is respected across different motorsport worlds.