GP: United States GP
Date: 21 October 2018
Winner: Kimi Raikkonen – Ferrari
15 years, 6 months, 28 days and 249 Grands Prix on from his maiden F1 win in Malaysia, on 23 March 2003, Raikkonen won in Austin.
It was his 21st win and also the last for this unconventional, but much loved Finn who won the world championship in 2007 with Ferrari.
Kimi was born in Espoo on 17 October 1979 and went on to make his F1 debut with Sauber after a phenomenal early racing career. Then he went to McLaren from 2002 to 2006, followed by a first stint with Ferrari from 2007 to 2009; Lotus in 2012 and 2013; back to Ferrari from 2014 to 2018 and finally Alfa Romeo from 2019 to 2021.
In that time, apart from those 21 wins, he racked up 18 pole positions, 46 fastest laps and 103 podium finishes.
But that's not all. Kimi tackled the World Rally Championship from 2009 to 2011 and raced in NASCAR in 2011 after quitting F1 for the first time. He also set up a team to race in the World Motocross Championship.
Super quick, a fierce competitor, not caring a jot about public relations or dealing with the media, he earned the nickname “Iceman,” although underneath it all he hid an emotional side. His manner and his blunt one-liners made him a huge fan favourite.
His best known comment was “leave me alone, I know what I'm doing,” a message he sent to his Lotus team as he drove to victory in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 2 November 2012.
In 2025 Pirelli will hit the 500 F1® Grands Prix mark during the season.
Legacy of Speed series looks back at the fifty most significant Grands Prix from Pirelli's time on the F1 World Championship trail.
