Kimi, how are you spending this period? Are you bored?
Pretty normal, pretty much the same as before. I spend all my time with the kids, we are lucky enough to be outdoors most of the time. We do a lot of hand work and a lot of activities. My days pass very quickly.
Let’s go back to two months ago, to the chaos of the Australian GP. You were on the plane back before the race was officially cancelled. Did you really not know if you were going to race?
Maybe I did or maybe I didn’t. But what does it matter now? It’s gone now. I just think canceling the race was the right thing to do. And so it was.
How do you feel about racing on circuits without spectators?
We will resume when the F1 and the FIA decide that it is possible to do it safely. It’s not our decision, I’m sure they will evaluate the picture very carefully. We will race at the right time, even without an audience.
Can this situation change your plans for the future?
No. Let’s wait until we find a way to start the season and finish it. At some point, I’ll see what’s going on and I’ll sum it up. Nothing changes for me at the moment.
How long do you want to continue in Formula 1?
As long as I have fun and motivation. Now I feel more motivated than ever.
You returned to the team with which you started in 2001 (Sauber, now partnered with Alfa), how is the atmosphere?
Good. In the second year we know each other better: they know what I want and I know what I want from them.
What do you think about online racing? A lot of drivers take part.
I don’t care, I’d rather wait until I can get back to a real track.
Neither did you like to drive the Ferrari simulator.
It’s not that I didn’t love it. Let’s say that flying to Italy to get in front of the simulator wasn’t exactly why I chose this job. It’s a different thing to drive around the track. And anyway, those simulators are completely different and extremely more complex than the online racing ones.
For a driver it must be strange to think of a season without the Monte Carlo GP, isn’t it?
It’s not up to us, and it’s not just that race that’s cancelled. We won’t be racing in Australia or anywhere else we would have liked. Unfortunately, that’s the situation.
With such a long break you don’t risk getting rusty in your body and mind?
I don’t think it’s much different from the traditional winter breaks since we’ve been back at the tests in Barcelona. This time I think we’ll go straight to the first race, I don’t see any particular problems.
Is it possible to make friends among the other drivers?
For me Sebastian and Antonio (Vettel and Giovinazzi) are friends. Apart from them I don’t have many.
You have been a protagonist of the last twenty years of F1. If you could travel back in time, in what era would you compete?
You can’t go back. I’m happy with where I am, when I started and what I achieved. But if you could, I would take a look at the F1 of the 70s and 80s.
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