As the Bottas to Ferrari story kicks off F1's silly... - NBCSports.com
Silly season, ordinarily lasting from Hungary to Abu Dhabi, is the portion of the F1 year that sees every driver on the market get linked with every seat on offer. Some moves are well-reasoned and possible – look at Fernando Alonso’s switch to McLaren last year – whilst other theories are merely a result of putting two and two together and getting five. The firestarter this year is Valtteri Bottas, who is bound for Ferrari as Kimi Raikkonen’s replacement according to a report in the Italian press that emerged on Friday. Ferrari has called the report “bulls***”, whilst Bottas’ manager has also called for a little caution. The end result for Kimi Raikkonen is likely to be retirement. The Finn has made clear in the past that he would most probably quit F1 once his time with Ferrari was up, and after 18 months and just one podium finish, it looks to be game over for him at Maranello. Raikkonen’s monosyllabic nature has always made him a target for rumors stemming from a lack of motivation. Raikkonen remains motivated, but has quite simply lacked the pace out on track this year. Had it not been for his accident, Jules would most probably be the man replacing Raikkonen for next. Source: motorsportstalk.nbcsports.com
