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Kimi Raikkonen has been the subject of a lot of criticism of late, and a look at the past few races certainly suggests that the world champion has lost a bit of momentum. In Germany he qualified sixth and finished in the same position, and in then Hungary he again started sixth and - helped by trouble ahead - moved up to third, albeit behind a Toyota.
It doesn't look like the sort of form that will enable the Finn to win a second successive title. And yet, despite the highs and lows of a turbulent season, he's still right there, just five points behind Lewis Hamilton. Last year after the Hungarian GP, the margin to the McLaren man was 20, and at Interlagos Kimi became world champion. Indeed, with two races to go he was still 17 points behind, so write him off at your peril.
It's easy to suggest that Kimi has somehow lost the plot, but that would be a little short sighted. Just a few weeks ago in France, Raikkonen started from pole and left his teammate Felipe Massa in his wake before an exhaust failure slowed him. In the Silverstone rain, he was catching Hamilton until his team screwed up their tyre strategy. And few noticed during the low-key outing in Hungary that he actually set fastest lap, having spent the first two-thirds of the race stuck behind Fernando Alonso.
