Source: f1zone.net
Lotus Renault GP, which will be renamed as Lotus F1 next season, is planning to unveil their 2012-spec car on February 6, according to French media sources. The new car will be unveiled a day before the start of the first winter testing session at the Jerez circuit in Andalucia, Spain.
Newly-signed Lotus Renault drivers, Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean, will be present to unveil the new car, although the name of the car is still unknown. Since the team is is planing to adopt Lotus as its chassis name starting in 2012, it is unlikely that the new car will be called the R32.
The new Lotus car is not expected to be particularly innovative, however, since the team has already stated that they plan to take a more conservative approach with the car that Raikkonen and Grosjean will race in their return to Formula 1 next year. Both of these drivers have not raced in Formula 1 since the 2009 season.
The Enstone-based team is the first team to confirm that its 2012-spec car will be ready in time for the first pre-season test. Although Red Bull has yet to confirm that they will make the first winter testing session in Jerez with its 2012 car, the team’s chief technical officer Adrian Newey is confident that the team is on schedule. Mercedes has already announced that it will miss the opening session in Jerez. The Mercedes AMG W03 will only make its debut on track on February 21 in Barcelona.
FUCK ISRAEL 
I promised to bring some highlights from Finnish media. Now, when it is little bit quiet time, I can bring this funny part of Anette Latva-Piikkilä’s column:
http://blogit.mtv3.fi/racegirl/2011/12/01/kiitti-kimi/
I warn you, this is a little bit “adult stuff” 🙂 Column is written mainly in Finnish, but there is also some English. Let me clarify to you, what has happened. Kimi had crashed his car and from the incar cam one can hear that Kimi is cursing out loud these legendary words: “Voi vittujen kevät!”. This is Finnish saying, but it is certainly not for children…
North One Star would have liked to use this clip from Kimi’s car. However, they could not understand, what Kimi was saying. So they ask Anette to do translation. Here is conversation between Anette and North One Sports journalist, who asked translation from Anette:
Anette: Öö it´s kinda hard to translate this…
North One Sportin toimittaja: Well try, we need to know what he says.
Anette: OK, straight translate would be: Spring time of the pussies
North One Sportin toimittaja: Really? What the hell does it mean??? U
finns are weird, we will not use that onboard piece.
I have to say, that I laugh loudly, when reading this. Anette’s translation is not fake one, this is how you translate “Voi vittujen kevät!”.
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WTF KIMI?! LOOOOOOOOOL
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rofl!
thanks for the translation!
I’m not that surprised^^
lol
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Heh, maybe some more clarification is needed. This is really a Finnish saying and doesn’t really mean anything meaningful even in Finnish. Same kind of clips are from other Finnish rally drivers too. I think most legendary one is this:
Have a nice weekend 🙂
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Priceless, I’ve always loved Grönholm’s ‘adrenaline filled curses’ 🙂 Fortunately I’m just across the channel from Finland so I understand the Finnish part as well.
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hahaha! thanks for posting that vid! lmao!
for the translation of Kimi’s words, even if that has not a real meaningful, even in french, that’s a weird cuss but soooo funny!
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Well, this saying “Voi vittujen kevät!” is no invented by Kimi Räikkönen. I have heard it many times before I even know who Kimi Räikkönen is. Tommi Mäkinen’s co-driver did also use this same saying when Tommi crashed in Jyväskylä rally 2001:
Heh 🙂
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In that video, go to part 3 min 45 seconds, if you not want to watch the whole video.
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I tried Google translate, it came back with “let vittujen sing”, googled vittujen got wikpedia on Finnish slang…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_profanity (Wikipedia)
[Edit by moderator: That’s a lot of text and as it contains a lot of profane language I decided to cut it and just paste the link to the text you quoted. Hope you don’t mind!]
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Don’t mind at all. Absolutely understand that profanity doesn’t really belong on a blog for Kimi…it’s just insightful to know that he is “human” like most of us and does express emotion despite the perception of his “aloof demeanor”, he manages to control it very well unlike his former teammate, Juan Pablo Montoya…I believe Formula One had been somewhat boring during his absence. Main topics of broadcasters were tires and elimination of refueling (no more “fireballs” to drive through). To think, that it would take a Finn to “spice up” a sport. Their attempts to make the driver’s appear to have “racy” lifestyles came down to watching Jessica Michibata, or Nicole Scherzinger quick spots. So I guess McLaren/Mercedes won the Team championship in at least one category…
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Heh heh, may be this conversation has gone too wild 🙂 However, I guess there is no translation for this “Voi vittujen kevät!” saying. At least not in Google translate 🙂
As I said before, there is no meaningful explanation for this saying. It doesn’t mean anything unless “Spring time of pussies” means something 🙂
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Absolutely TinMan (looool I call Kimi that sometimes as a joke). Kimi’s maturity and character composure is what I love as it’s quite a rare thing, even more so in a world like F1. Although Montoya’s potty mouth was equally rare in F1 lol
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