F1 Throwback: The Strange McLaren Tradition That Scared Kimi Raikkonen Before his Exit
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Former McLaren engineer Marc Priestly recently revealed plenty of stories about his time in Formula One. One of his most recent stories, revolved around the infamous 2005 US Grand Prix. However, he also had an interesting tale of the time where he pranked Kimi Raikkonen.
Back in the day, McLaren had a tradition specially reserved for employees who leave or retire. It didn’t matter who the employee was, they would always get themselves dyed blue. The team would add powdered blue dye to the coolant system within the engine. So, if some of that powder landed on someone, followed by water, they immediately turn into ‘a Smurf’. The worst part is that it could last for days, if not taken car of immediately.
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Kimi Raikkonen got that treatment before he joined Ferrari
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When news broke of Raikkonen’s departure from McLaren, nobody was going to let him get away scot free. So, Priestly decided that he will dye Kimi Raikkonen blue while he is in his final week with McLaren. Initially, he meant it in jest, because he didn’t want to dye a driver blue or he would get sacked.
At the Brazilian GP, Priestly reminded Raikkonen of the tradition, and for the first time, the Finn was scared. However, he boldly declared, “You won’t get me, I’ll get a helicopter straight after the race.”
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Of course, he didn’t plan to prank the Finnish driver, merely make him nervous. As the days past, Priestly’s jabbing began to get to him, and the engineer decided to go ahead with the prank. As he explained, “I hatched a plan, it was stupid, ridiculous, immature, but it was brilliant.”
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“My foolproof plan was this, on the grid, once Kimi stepped away from the car to chat with his engineer or go to the toilet, I’d sprinkle some of the infamous powder into his race gloves. Kimi would then drive for two hours, his palms sweating in the Sao Paulo heat. At the end of the Grand Prix, he’d remove his gloves to find that his hands had turned into an alarming shade of blue.”
To be honest, it was a risky move because Kimi Raikkonen was very particular about his gloves. Had he suspected any tampering, it would have also affected his race. However, the worst part is, after the race, he took off his gloves and shook hands with team boss Ron Dennis, his wife, Mercedes head Norbert Haug and his wife, as well.
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