Jean Alesi has told Ferrari’s new signing, Kimi Raikkonen, that driving for the Maranello based team in F1 is a privilege.
The Frenchman, who has now left Germany’s DTM touring car series, raced a red single seater between 1991 and 1995.
“Ferrari? It is the best place to be in F1,” 42-year-old Alesi, having raced his last grand prix for Jordan in 2001, told the magazine Auto Motor und Sport.
He added: “For Raikkonen, a paradise awaits.
“I remember signing autographs for a whole hour on an Italian freeway — just because I drove for Ferrari.
“It’s like being a doctor — you are respected for it all over the world.”
Alesi insists that he does not regret pulling out of a deal with Williams in 1991 to drive a less competitive Ferrari.
“You say I could have become world champion? I also could have died. Like (Ayrton) Senna, who also drove for Williams, who knows what my destiny could have been.”
GMMF1
DailyF1News.com
