The Finn had struggled...

The Finn had struggled to match the pace of team-mate Felipe Massa during pre-season testing, prompting sceptics to wonder if he was the right man for the job. But he took advantage when mechanical problems hit the Brazilian in qualifying, and claimed pole position, then led the Australian Grand Prix from start to finish.

Afterwards, Ferrari chief Jean Todt handed Raikkonen a mobile and Kimi said: “It was Michael on the phone, but the line was pretty bad so I couldn’t really hear him. However, winning this race was a very special moment.” And he revealed his triumph wasn’t as easy as it looked. He stressed: “Just before the start, my radio broke, so communication proved to be a bit complicated. But at least before the race we had a plan of what we wanted to do, so I knew pretty much what was supposed to happen. In some places, though, it wasn’t an ideal situation.”

Bitter rival Fernando Alonso, who finished runner-up, believes it won’t be long before his new McLaren outfit gets to grips with Ferrari. He said: “We have to work a little bit more if we want victories, but today we proved we are here to win. We saw good potential today, and I’m looking forward to the next race.” British debutant Lewis Hamilton was third.

It was actually Raikkonen’s second race victory in the past couple of weeks. He won a 15-mile snowmobile event in his homeland, after entering the event under the pseudonym of F1 hellraiser James Hunt. He revealed that the seven-time world champion rang him up to congratulate him after the race.