Jack Doohan will use the identical profession quantity as one in all his racing heroes when he makes his grand prix debut subsequent 12 months.
He has chosen to take over the quantity seven, final utilized by Kimi Raikkonen, when he arrives in F1 with Alpine subsequent 12 months.
“I actually wished to go along with a quantity that I raced with earlier than, one thing that had which means for me,” he mentioned in a video launched by Alpine. “I raced with quantity seven in 2019.”
Doohan used the quantity that 12 months when he drove for Double R, a Components 3 workforce based by Raikkonen and his supervisor Steve Robertson, in Euroformula Open.
“Additionally one in all my idols, an excellent particular particular person and driver, Kimi Raikkonen, additionally drove with that quantity,” Doohan added. “I’m actually trying ahead to persevering with it on and make it my very own and getting some luck from quantity seven.”
Raikkonen’s quantity grew to become obtainable to be used firstly of this 12 months as he retired on the finish of the 2021 season.
The Finnish world champion first used the quantity when it was allotted to him in 2013, the ultimate 12 months earlier than F1 first launched everlasting profession numbers. On the time Raikkonen drove for Lotus, which was later taken over by Renault and rebranded as Alpine.
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When F1 first gave drivers the chance to decide on a everlasting quantity, Raikkonen initially thought of a change. “There was an opportunity that I’d take six as a result of I gained the championship with it,” he mentioned. “However I knew that [Nico] Rosberg wished it as a result of his father gained the championship with it so I simply stored what I had.”
Raikkonen began 176 races as quantity seven, essentially the most of any driver, and greater than half of his 349 profession begins.
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