Raikkonen satisfied with F1 return

18/03/2012

Mat Coch writes:

Kimi Raikkonen finished in seventh place on his return to Formula One. It proved to be an eventful race after starting in a lowly eighteenth spot.

The Lotus driver got away well, gaining four positions by the time the field reached the first corner, before being delayed by the spinning Bruno Senna. "I lost quite a few places in the first corner because I had to almost stop and go on the grass," said the Finn after the race.

There were no signs of rustiness for the former world champion who was caught in traffic for much of the race. An aggressive move on Kamui Kobayashi shortly after his first pit stop epitomised the Finn's return.

"Not the perfect weekend," he admitted, "after yesterday, where we put ourselves, I think we did pretty okay."

Raikkonen's teammate Romain Grosjean, who surprised many by claiming third spot in qualifying, was eliminated from the race on lap three after touching Pastor Maldonado's Williams. It capped off a promising if ultimately disappointing weekend for Lotus.

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