Often Kimi Raikkonen has been compared to James Hunt, and their playboy lifestyles do have a few similarities. Both are world champions, and neither of them give a damn about the consequences of anything they say. The playboy lifestyles they lead were in stark comparison to their fellow drivers at their times. But the key difference lies in their core personalities.
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| SEX: Breakfast of Champions. James Hunt doing his thing. |
James Hunt was English, and he led a quintessentially eccentric english lifestyle. He spoke to the media, and loved appearing on the television. People didn't only love him for his driving, but for his personality as well. James Hunt was rumoured to have slept with 33 British Airways stewardesses. In a week. That does guarantee a certain degree of respect. I'm not sure if it is a record, but that is how James Hunt lived life. He was often to be found before a race, in a small shed, having drugs and sex. It was his pre-race ritual. Apparently James Hunt slept with more than 5,000 women before he passed away at the age of 45. He attended formal functions, and press events barefoot. He would often go for dinner with his alsatian, Oscar at expensive Mayfair restaurants. I'd say he redefined the very definition of a 'playboy'. He won the 1976 championship by one point from Niki Lauda. After retiring from racing, he became a commentator for the BBC covering Formula 1 races with Murray Walker. Hunt had a dry and satiric humour, and he often berated drivers who he believed weren't good enough, or had made silly errors. The day he died of an heart attack, he proposed to his girlfriend of the time, Helen Dyson.
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| On the streets of Monaco |
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| Kimi Raikkonen |
Kimi Raikkonen is Finnish, and he is possibly the only man who doesn't give a damn about anything. He hates the media and PR events with a passion with which he loves racing. Unlike James Hunt who struggled to enter Formula 1, Kimi Raikkonen had a prodigious rise to the top level of motorsport. Having completed just 23 Formula Renault races, of which he won half, he was given a Sauber race seat, and he scored points at his very first race. Ferrari and McLaren both offered him a race seat after his first year at Sauber, and Kimi wisely chose McLaren, where he became de facto team leader. Throughout his career, showed utter disrespect to the media, and prefers not to speak with anyone. But the wild lifestyle which he leads often makes front page news, and his answers to the questions by the media is now the stuff of legends. He has built a brand around his demeanour. He goes by the nickname of 'Iceman' derived from his ever cool exterior. It might also do with his love of drinking and ice-cream. He might be the most laid back person in the paddock, but he is the fastest man on the track. In 2007, he switched to Ferrari after five frustrating years at McLaren. He also won his title in 2007 by a single point. After being dropped at the end of 2009 by Ferrari, he took the severance pay and went rallying, where his performance came as a shock to the well established rally drivers. He was just as quick, and if not quicker. In 2012, Lotus-Renault bought him back to Formula 1, and Kimi put in the best performance of his career in a car that was often few seconds off the pace of the leaders. He started 2013 with a hugely convincing win, and hopefully his second title is along the way.
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| James Hunt's iconic helmet design |
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| Kimi Raikkonen's tribute to James Hunt |
Kimi Raikkonen is an outspoken James Hunt and in Monaco 2012, he wore a James Hunt helmet as a tribute to the eccentric world champion. Although they might have completely different personalities, they do share one common trait. Both live life as they want to, and not how their sponsors, or media force them to. This individuality is rare, and very few sportsmen dare to express their true personalities. James Hunt and Kimi Raikkonen are different. They might not be as successful as Schumacher, but they will be respected more for their fearless and individualistic attitude toward life.
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| Raikkonen with Lotus |
