Kimi Raikkonen started working with the Finnish company iLOQ in early 2019 – they develop and manufacture modern electronic locks – and this collaboration continues to this day, although he has already retired from Formula 1.
The head of iLOQ, Heikki Hiltunen, admits that this sponsorship program is costly for the company, but as it wants to expand its presence in the US market, it is willing to pay. Coincidentally, Kimi is getting ready to start the NASCAR race in Austin this weekend.
“We were approached by Sami Visa (Räikkönen’s manager) who said that Kimi was going to race on the circuit where he took his last F1 win and asked if it would be interesting for iLOQ to get involved in this project,” Hilttunen said. to the newspaper Iltalehti. . – We once agreed that if Kimi proposes an interesting project, we will consider it.
When he raced in NASCAR at Watkins Glen last year, we were involved as well.”
In 2021, Hiltunen somehow admitted that the collaboration with Raikkonen is costing the company seven figures, although he did not mention specific figures. He still refused to comment on the financial parameters of the contract with the 2007 world champion, only emphasizing: “Kimi has 1.3 million subscribers on social networks. In addition, he is still one of the most famous drivers in Formula 1 history and perhaps the most famous Finn in the world.
Therefore, such cooperation is really beneficial for both sides. Not every company can become a partner of Kimi, he is very picky about that. He shares our values and we value him for his honest and open way of doing business. We trust each other and don’t need to belong together. Once you manage to get to know Kimi better, the collaboration goes smoothly and without complications.
And we are gradually starting to work with Robin, the son of Kimi Raikkonen. If you look closely at the car on which it performs in karting, you will see our logos. Those are also on his hat, so we also support the Kimi family.”
The approach Heikki Hiltunen is talking about is completely justified. Finnish drivers have always been considered heroes in their homeland and according to a recent poll, news about Valtteri Bottas in the Finnish media attracts more readers’ attention than reports about the activities of the country’s president, prime minister and foreign minister combined.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
