Di Montezemolo relishes Kimi return

Ferrari president Luca Di Montezemolo has no doubt Fernando Alonso will benefit from Kimi Raikkonen's return "to greatness".

Alonso and Raikkonen are to be paired together at Ferrari from next season after the Finn signed a two-year contract last week, replacing Felipe Massa for a second spell with the Maranello marque.

It is a partnership seven-times Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher has predicted will lead to "fireworks".

Di Montezemolo has wasted no time in stirring the pot himself, suggesting Raikkonen, who won his only world championship with Ferrari in 2007, could beat Alonso to the title.

Di Montezemolo has drawn comparisons with Niki Lauda's triumph over Alain Prost at McLaren after the Austrian returned from a sabbatical to claim his third world title.

"Raikkonen's case is almost identical to Lauda," said Di Montezemolo, speaking in Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Niki at a certain point also said 'enough' because he couldn't do it any more.

"I'm speaking of the twin brother of Kimi, because the driver we had racing for us wasn't the one we hired.

"The break has done him good, he has returned to greatness, he's won races, he's finished lots of races.

"I wanted a driver who would make me look back on Massa with regret and I've got one.

"From Raikkonen I am demanding victories, consistency, podiums. Alonso will be the main beneficiary.

"Returning to Lauda, when he came back remember he beat Prost to the world championship."

Di Montezemolo feels Raikkonen was the superior choice over another contender in Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg, who was understood to have been on the brink of signing when Ferrari pulled the plug.

But with the extensive change in the powertrain regulations from next year, Di Montezemolo believes Raikkonen's experience will be of greater benefit.

"The alternative of signing a young driver in a championship as complex as 2014 did not give us certainty," added Di Montezemolo.

"Today Raikkonen is the strongest of everyone, along with Alonso, (Sebastian) Vettel and (Lewis) Hamilton."