Ferrari's dream pairing signals high-risk, strategic shift

It was natural that the announcement that Kimi Raikkonen will rejoin Ferrari on a two-year contract would grab the headlines.

What is less obvious is that the move marks a significant and, some believe, high-risk change of strategy for the Italian Formula One team.

The Finn, who won the 2007 title for Ferrari, was ironically dropped by the Scuderia in 2010 to make way for Fernando Alonso. But the Spaniard, despite winning 11 races for the team, has yet to add to the two world titles he gained in 2005 and 2006 while driving for Renault.

Raikkonen is now 33 and Alonso 32. They are both acutely aware that time is running out if they want to win another title. In such circumstances, one cannot expect either to say "after you" to his team-mate. "The devil takes the hindmost" is more like it.

On one hand, the pairing can be perceived as a "dream team" for Ferrari. It is the first time since 1953, when Alberto Ascari lined up alongside Nino Farina, that the team have had two world champions in their line-up.

Since that time, Ferrari have traditionally preferred to back an established winner with either a younger recruit or a loyal retainer.

Next year, that will change. It is great news for the sport but it could be a double-edged sword for the Ferrari management.

There is a saying in motor racing that the most important driver to beat is your team-mate. He is the one driving the same type of car as you, the yardstick by which you can judge yourself.

Also, if you beat your team-mate regularly, you start to control the team's destiny.

In the testosterone-laden atmosphere of the pit lane, it's a bit like becoming the alpha male in a pride of lions.

Alonso has achieved just that, aided by an accident in 2010 which kept team-mate Felipe Massa out of racing for half the season.

By the time the Brazilian regained the track, Alonso was in an unassailable position in the Ferrari hierarchy, a situation he has since maintained.

Whatever is said publicly, Alonso will not be happy about a driver who will challenge his No.1 status in the team. He has also proved surprisingly fragile in this environment before.

Remember the "melt-down at McLaren" in 2007?

Alonso joined the team from Renault as reigning world champion. However, Lewis Hamilton was making his Formula One debut with the team that season and the precocious Brit refused to bow before the great Alonso.

The feud, ironically, allowed Raikkonen to win his title. Alonso and Hamilton scored a dead-heat for second place, a single championship point behind the Finn.

It then got even worse for McLaren as a disillusioned Alonso made allegations to the sport's governing body, the FIA, that McLaren had possessed confidential Ferrari data. That led to the "Ferrari-gate" scandal, a record fine and a huge blow to McLaren's public image.

Meanwhile, Raikkonen, despite scoring nine wins for Ferrari between 2007 and 2009, was effectively sacked by the team to make way for Alonso.

The deal was driven by the arrival of a major Ferrari sponsor, the Spanish-owned bank Santander, which underwrote Alonso's record salary; estimated at US$32 million (S$40.6 million), with a further US$3 million in endorsements.

It was said at the time, Raikkonen was paid US$10 million by Ferrari not to drive in Formula One in the 2010 season for which he was still contracted (with further irony, a similar sum to that which he will receive next year).

It was notable that a clear Ferrari team strategy was to pair Alonso with Massa, a more comfortable team-mate.

Next year, that will all change for Alonso. It will certainly take some very clever management by race director Stefano Domenicali to keep both Alonso and Raikkonen's highly-strung temperaments in tune through the 2014 season.

stsports@sph.com.sg

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