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Ron
Dennis has opened up on why Kimi Raikkonen left McLaren
Mercedes during the final years of his tenure as the team's boss
and looked back with some warm remarks.
In
a wide-ranging interview with F1 Racing Magazine, Dennis, who
announced two weeks ago that he is to stand down as McLaren's Team
Principal, revealed the reasons why the team has parted company
with some of F1's finest driving talent in recent years.
Denying
that Kimi Raikkonen was "too wild" for the McLaren ethos,
Dennis instead depicted his departure as a simple matter of
business. "He was made an offer he couldn't refuse - he
secured a much better commercial arrangement with Ferrari than we
could have offered."
Contrary
to the public's perception of Dennis as a cold and distant
businessman, his remarks on Kimi are notably conciliatory and
warm. While it is no surprise to learn of his profession respect
for each of his former charges - especially Raikkonen with whom he
enjoyed the longest working association - there are a few personal
asides that reveal a side of Dennis' personality that is rarely
witnessed by the public.
Dennis'
affection for Kimi - to whom the McLaren boss only refers to by
his Christian name - is particularly evident and generous.
"Kimi left McLaren as a friend and he is still a friend. It's
great to beat him: although I'd far rather one of our drivers won,
it made me smile when he won his world title in 2007."
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