Kimi Raikkonen hopeful “a circuit like Suzuka can help us get the most out of our car”. Kimi previews the next round.

Alfa Romeo Racing head to Suzuka for the next round of the 2019 Formula One season, the Japanese Grand Prix. The high-speed track remains one of the ultimate driving challenges anywhere in the world and is a firm favourite amongst drivers. The enthusiastic local fans are known for their incredibly dedicated support and will be sure to provide a warm welcome to the F1 circus.

As a team, Alfa had a difficult weekend in Russia, but arrives in Japan recovered and ready to continue the steady improvement.

Kimi Räikkönen (car number 7):
“The last four races have been disappointing for me and the team, but we shouldn’t forget we looked strong in Belgium and Italy despite the issues that prevented me from scoring. The key is to recover the form we had before and immediately after the break: the gap from our rivals in the midfield is not big and hopefully a circuit like Suzuka can help us get the most out of our car. It’s a track I like and the fans are incredible, so I am looking forward to the weekend.”

Antonio Giovinazzi (car number 99):
“Suzuka is one of those historical tracks on which everyone wants to do well. It’s a very challenging layout and to drive on it in a Formula One car for the first time will be quite the experience. I had a good run of races before Russia and I know we can be at that level again in Japan. It’s a very different track from the last few we raced, so hopefully we will be able to turn our fortunes around and get back in the points.”

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo Racing and CEO Sauber Motorsport AG:
“We head to Japan with the commitment and motivation to get back into the points immediately. We must not forget we have been scoring in two of the last three races, so putting both cars in the points is a realistic objective: but we still feel there is more we could have brought home from the last few races. The track layout in Suzuka is quite different from Sochi and Singapore, so hopefully it will suit the C38 better and put us back towards the front of the midfield. Both trackside and at HQ, we need to keep working hard to extract the most out of our car: marginal gains is all there is to go from P12 to P7 in a race at this stage in the season.”