Räikkönen 'proud' ahead of last Ferrari race

Kimi Räikkönen hopes to end his Ferrari career on a high note in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend. The Finn, who picked up his world title during his first season with the Scuderia in 2007, is yet to sign a deal with another team as Fernando Alonso moves to Maranello for 2010.

With predecessor Alonso joining Felipe Massa in a red car next year, Räikkönen's final season with Ferrari has been brought forward after a premature termination of his contract. "The race in Abu Dhabi will be my last Grand Prix with Ferrari and, as usual, I will give it everything to gain the best possible result," said Kimi, who celebrated his 30th birthday on Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying day.

He added that he will try his upmost to ensure that Ferrari, now lying one point adrift of McLaren, finishes third in this season's championship. Räikkönen himself is positioned one point behind fellow Champion Lewis Hamilton in the battle for a top five placing in the Drivers' standings behind the Brawn and Red Bull pilots.

"It's time for me to say goodbye to the guys at Ferrari after three years together," Räikkönen continued. "I'm proud of the things we have achieved, especially the Drivers' title in 2007 and the Constructors' title in the same year and in 2008.

"This season the car hasn't been as competitive as we wanted but at least we managed to win one race and gain a certain amount of points - let's hope we can conclude the season with something nice to be remembered!"

Source: gpupdate