A new Formula 1 seasons kicks off at the weekend with the Australian Grand Prix and both Ferrari and its driver Kimi Raikkonen see no advantage in being the reigning champions.
Speaking at a pre-race press conference, Raikkonen said he did not feel any pressure in being the title holder because ''the season has not even started yet. Let's wait and see what happens this weekend and during the rest of the season. For sure we will do the best we can''. While not specifically mentioning Ferrari or last year's archrival McLaren-Mercedes, the world champion observed that ''from what we've seen in testing, it looks like two teams and four drivers will again be very close''.
Looking at the coming season, his second with Ferrari, the Finn said ''the situation is a bit easier now because last year we were not as well prepared and I was new to the team''.
Teammate Felipe Massa agreed that each season begins with a clean slate and said ''it's the first race and we all start on zero points''.
Asked whether his team was the favorite for the title, the Brazilian driver observed how ''Ferrari is always in the spotlight, whether we are champions or not. But we always go out on track with just one thought in mind: to win the race''.
Looking at his own chances of winning the championship, Massa said ''I hope I'm luckier than I've been over the past few years and that my season gets off to a more positive start. We'll find out on Sunday''.
''But I'm confident and feel I can fight for the title all year long, because we saw last year how everything can change in the space of a race,'' he added.
''I hope that the championship battle becomes a fight between me and Kimi because that would mean we have the best car and we are the best team. We are both very comfortable within the team and we both want to win,'' Massa said.
The key to success this year for him and for Ferrari, Massa observed, will be ''consistency and reliability''.
''Consistency in picking up points will be important, but even more important will be reliability and by this I mean reliability in all areas: from the engine to gearbox to the car itself''.
This view was echoed by Stefano Domenicali, who this year took over from Jean Todt as Ferrari team boss.
''I am pretty sure that this year reliability will make the difference, especially in the first half of the season.
However, our car seems to be a good one and now we need to see exactly where the others are in terms of both performance and reliability,'' he said.
''We have a great respect for all our competitors but we know we can do something good again this year,'' Domenicali added.
NEW TEAM SPONSOR.
Ferrari will start the 2008 season with a new official sponsor: the United Arab Emirates national carrier Etihad Airways.
''We are pleased to enter into this new partnership which reinforces our links with the United Arab Emirates, '' Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo said.
''Our collaboration with Etihad Airways is in addition to that with the Mubadala Development Company, who are both a sponsor and shareholder of the company. Then there is Abu Dhabi where the first Ferrari theme park is being built on Yas island'', he added.
The Etihad logo will be positioned at the back of the rear wing, on the turning vanes and on the drivers' helmets. The sponsorship agreement is for three years.
