Kimi Raikkonen believes his party lifestyle outside of Formula 1 has made him a better driver, as it leads to a more relaxed atmosphere.
Raikkonen is well known to enjoy a good party to the extent it has become a running joke within the sport and amongst F1 fans, but the Finnish driver reckons it's helped him to find a good work-life balance which has a positive impact on his driving.
"Obviously it’s been a joke often," he said during Formula 1's Beyond The Grid podcast. "But I actually think it’s more true than a joke that I’ve often been driving better [after] doing whatever I want between the races than if I’m just not having fun and drinks and stuff.
"I always thought that [you become] more relaxed and then you need to put more effort and concentration in [when racing] because you’re a bit unsure. And then the end result comes out better.
"I always joked in the past that as long as you have more drinking days than hangover days you are all fine. For sure on that point the numbers were right."
This season will be Raikkonen's 19th in F1 and he returns to the team in which he began his career, and insists he's still enjoying the sport despite sometimes coming across as though he's bored or uninterested.
"I enjoy it otherwise I wouldn’t be here today," he added. "I guess I enjoy the speed but I never really thought about it too much.
"I enjoy racing. Testing is great with the new cars and it’s always exciting to see the new cars but let’s say I am happy that there is only like eight days in the end because after a while we are going around the same circuit forever.
"The main thing is the racing and going against each other and doing everything as well as you can. It’s painful sometimes when you do mistakes or you don’t get exactly what you want but I guess that challenge is also the one that is enjoyable."
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