Team Lotus Renault GP revealed on Monday that former Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen will drive a two-year-old Renault at Valencia, Spain.
Raikkonen, who left Formula 1 at the end of 2009, will be back in a R30 at Valencia on January 23 and 24.
The Finn will then take part in the first official winter test session to be held at Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, February 7-10.
Raikkonen, who spent the last two seasons competing in the World Rally Championship, had a seat fitting inside the R30 last week at the team base in Enstone, UK.
“The last time I was at Enstone I quickly jumped into a seat, but this is indeed the first time I have properly sat in an F1 car with a helmet on since the last race of 2009,” said Raikkonen.
“It felt a bit odd at first because the cockpit seems a bit small, but that’s normal. It’s just like in the past when I have done seat fittings – it feels a bit strange when you first step into the car but you quickly adjust. It will be nice to get back to racing,” the former Ferrari driver added.
The two-year-old Renault cannot run on current Pirelli's race tires, so it will be fitted with tire used for demo running that are quite different.
Raikkonen, who left Formula 1 at the end of 2009, will be back in a R30 at Valencia on January 23 and 24.
The Finn will then take part in the first official winter test session to be held at Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, February 7-10.
Raikkonen, who spent the last two seasons competing in the World Rally Championship, had a seat fitting inside the R30 last week at the team base in Enstone, UK.
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| Renault R30. (Photo: WRi2) |
“The last time I was at Enstone I quickly jumped into a seat, but this is indeed the first time I have properly sat in an F1 car with a helmet on since the last race of 2009,” said Raikkonen.
“It felt a bit odd at first because the cockpit seems a bit small, but that’s normal. It’s just like in the past when I have done seat fittings – it feels a bit strange when you first step into the car but you quickly adjust. It will be nice to get back to racing,” the former Ferrari driver added.
The two-year-old Renault cannot run on current Pirelli's race tires, so it will be fitted with tire used for demo running that are quite different.