Kimi Raikkonen a 'laggard' and must do more, says Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne
Raikkonen 88 points behind team-mate Vettel in championship
By Jonathan Green
Last Updated: 18/07/17 12:17pm
Kimi Raikkonen has become a "laggard" and must do more for Ferrari, the team's president Sergio Marchionne has said.
The Finn's season continued to stutter in Sunday's Austrian GP as he finished fifth, 20 seconds behind race-winner Valtteri Bottas, having started third on the grid.
While Sebastian Vettel leads the world championship, Raikkonen has rarely matched his team-mate's pace in 2017 and is fifth in the standings, 88 points behind the German.
The 2007 world champion is out of contract at the end of the season and Marchionne said the 37-year-old was falling behind his rivals.
"I think Kimi has got to show a higher level of commitment to the process," he said ahead of Sunday's race.
"There are days when I think he's a bit of a laggard, but we'll see. I am going to talk to him, we'll see what happens."
If you're wondering what a laggard is...
A person who makes slow progress and falls behind others. (As defined by the Oxford English Dictionary)
Raikkonen's best result of the season so far was his second place finish at May's Monaco GP when he also started on pole. His last race win was in the 2013 Australian GP, during his final season with Lotus.
Drivers' Championship standings
| Driver | Team | Points |
| Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 171 |
| Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 151 |
| Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 136 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | 107 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | 83 |
It is the second time this season that Marchionne has publicly criticised Raikkonen.
Following the Chinese GP, the Ferrari boss questioned if Raikkonen was "tired" after finishing fifth in Shanghai.
Neither Raikkonen nor Vettel are contracted for 2018 and Marchionne told Sky F1 that they were considering all options for their driver line-up next season.
"All options are on the table. We will continue discussing with Kimi. I've made it very clear if Sebastian wants to stay, he has the option," he said.
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