Ferrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene joked Kimi Raikkonen is "becoming a good guy" after seeing the way the notoriously reserved Finn interacted with the tifosi at Monza.
Raikkonen has been re-signed by Ferrari for 2016 and he repaid that faith by qualifying second on the grid at the Italian Grand Prix, only for that hard work to be undone with a poor start. The Finn had spent a long time on Thursday evening signing autographs for fans, something he has been averse to doing in previous years.
Asked how he got Raikkonen to be so relaxed and open with the fans, Arrivabene replied: "I was simply talking with him in my way - no, I'm joking now. We had several conversations and I said I know that you are a very cool guy and most probably because you are cool, they like you but at least if we meet the guys - the tifosi - you have to sign and at least move your hand and say hello and possibly to smile."
Arrivabene says Raikkonen followed his advice so well he was convinced he was looking at a "doppleganger" of the 2007 world champion.
"And he stuck to these instructions and I was thinking, is there something wrong here? I was happy, of course, but then I was thinking that maybe he's becoming superstitious and he's doing this and tomorrow it's raining and also on Sunday. And I was hoping about that. He's becoming a good guy and I was pleased about that, even if I'm still thinking and when I'm thinking, I said it can't be Kimi, it was a sosia [doppelganger] or somebody else.