After battling through pain in Singapore and having it flare up again after the Abu Dhabi GP, Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen is to undergo surgery on his back.
Raikkonen, world champion with Ferrari in 2007, is set to return to his former employer for the 2014 campaign. With two months between the final race in Brazil and the start of the first test of 2014, Raikkonen decided to have the surgery now in order to be fully fit for the new season.
No word has been given on Raikkonen’s replacement for the final two races of the 2013 season in America and Brazil, but the front-runner for the coveted seat is GP 2 driver, Davide Valsecchi. The 2012 GP2 champion had completed mileage in the E21 in pre-season testing and has been a part of Lotus throughout the season as its official reserve driver.
Another replacement for Raikkonen would be Jerome d’Ambrosio. D’Ambrosio, a driver with 20 Grands Prix to his name, stood in for Romain Grosjean in last year’s Italian GP after the Frenchman had been given a one race ban for causing the accident in Spa.
Raikkonen, currently third in the driver’s championship, will take no further part in this year’s championship, which will see him drop in the rankings. Lotus is currently in fourth place. Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull Racing secured both titles for the fourth straight year.