24 December 2023 , 08:00
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Karun Chandhok was once placed in a headlock by Kimi Raikkonen during an encounter with the 2007 Formula 1 champion in Japan.
Nicknamed 'The Iceman', Raikkonen was known not only for his speed and racecraft on the track but also his personality off it. He famously hated his media duties and, slightly perversely, became a fan-favourite for his bluntness.
He was also known for his penchant for partying, particularly in his younger days. And one story Sky Sports F1 pundit Chandhok has to tell about the Finn is based on a time when he had had a few to drink.
Chandhok giggled as he told the story of his run-in with Raikkonen after the Japanese Grand Prix to an audience. "He came up - it was bizarre, really, because we were in a bar in Tokyo after the race and it was at some ridiculous time in the morning.
"He'd obviously had a lot of 'clear liquid' - but he just came up to me and went, 'I want a curry, take me somewhere'. And I just stood there and went, 'I haven't spoken to you in a decade but, sure, we can go to dinner, that'll be fun'.
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"And then when I said I didn't know where a curry restaurant was in Tokyo, he got me in a headlock, wrestled me to the ground and then just walked off!"
While that particular incident only came to light because Chandhok shared the story, Raikkonen never shied away from some much more public eye-catching stunts. Perhaps the most famous came at the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix, which did not go particularly well for the Finn.
Kimi Raikkonen is one of Formula 1's great characters (Getty Images for Richard Mille)He was driving for McLaren at the time and did not finish the race that weekend, as his car caught fire as a result of a mechanical failure at the exit of the famous Loews Hairpin. Usually, a driver would make their way back to the pits to talk through what had happened with colleagues and watch the rest of the race from the team garage.
But Raikkonen has never been one for following rules or conventions. His reaction to the disappointment of a DNF was to walk down to the marina where his family yacht was moored and, after taking his shirt off, to relax on the water while taking in the rest of the race with a beer in his hand surrounded by friends.
"Racing and partying, for me it was normal," he said of his lifestyle during the height of his career. He even once admitted to going on a 16-day bender between events during the 2013 season, but insisted his antics "absolutely" did not have a negative impact on his racing.