Kimi Raikඣkonen says it was a “quite straightforward” decision to extend his Formula 1 season and continue wi🍌th Alfa Romeo for 2021.

The Finn, 41, is set to embark on๊ a rema💜rkable 19th F1 season next year alongside Antonio Giovinazzi, with Alfa Romeo opting to keep an unchanged driver line-up for the third successive season.

R𝓡aikkonen has already broken Rubens Barrichello’s record for most grand prix starts this year and will continue to stretch that benchmark out further with up to 23 races expected on the ♌2021 calendar.

“I don’t think it was anything difficult,” Raikkonen explained. “We signed itꦡ yesterday. You keep asking always about the future but if we haven’t signed anything, I wouldn’t start lyin🗹g either way.

“There was many aspects from the tea𝕴m’s side, on what they want to do, and what I want to do, and obviously there’s other things in a life that you need to look into.

“But in the end it made sense from my side and obviously for their siꦡde, and once we started to talk about it, it wasn’t such a long process. So it was quite straightforward in the end.”

Alfa Romeo has endured a difficult 2020 sea🌟son and currently lies eighth in the constructoꦅrs’ championship, having been stuck towards the back of the grid battling the likes of Haas and Williams.

Raikkonen, who has scored t🎃wo of Alfa Romeo’s five points so far this season, is hopeful of the team’s fortunes improving in 2021.

“As a team none of us are happy where we are but unfortunately this is the situation right now and the aim is to improve and🧔 be a lot better off,” he added.

“But there is no guarantee on anything so we have to simply do a better job overall and hopefully next year we’ll be a bit happier with things and be 𒀰where we expect to be.”