Former champion Kimi Raikkonen to undergo back surgery & will miss last 2 races of F1 season

PARIS – Former world champion Kimi Raikkonen will miss the final two races of the Formula One season as he will undergo back surgery.

Lotus said in a brief statement Sunday that the surgery will rule Raikkonen out of next week’s United States Grand Prix and the season-ending Brazilian GP at the end of this month.

Lotus says it “will make an announcement about the replacement driver” in due course.

The 34-year-old Raikkonen has suffered with back pains in recent months and almost missed the Singapore GP in September when the problem flared up again.

Raikkonen’s Lotus career is effectively over as he will drive for Ferrari next year.

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