Lotus F1 Team
Australian Grand Prix winner Kimi Raikkonen says that his victory was one of the easiest of his career.
Raikkonen claimed his twentieth win in the season opener in Melbourne, equaling the victory tally of compatriot Mika Hakkinen.
"I’m happy for the team and for myself also. We’ve had a quick car all weekend and there were no issues with it either, so we could just focus on trying different things and getting the setup how we wanted," he said.
"I had a good feeling that we would be ok with the tyres after practice and the team got the strategy perfect. I made a few places at the start and then had a good battle with Lewis [Hamilton] but after that it was quite simple; probably one of my easiest wins. You can’t start the season much better than winning the first race and of course we hope we can be fighting at the front of the Championship, but there’s a long way to go still and we need to keep pushing hard all the way."
Team principal Eric Bouiller praised Raikkonen after giving Lotus their second victory since their F1 comeback.
"I’m very happy. After Kimi’s great start we were hoping that we could achieve a podium finish, then as the race unfolded and we saw the other teams pitting – showing that they were on three-stop strategies – our position became stronger and stronger. It’s a fantastic feeling to open the season in this way. Kimi drove impeccably all weekend and gave the team his all."
