Kimi Raikkonen tied with current and former NBA stars Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan for second place on
Forbes magazine’s latest list of the world’s richest athletes. The trio tailed golf's transcendent star, Tiger Woods, who easily swept the board with a reputed $110m in total annual earnings.
The 2007 World Champion reportedly pulled down $45 million in earnings, retainers, personal sponsorships and other interests last year, matching that of the LA Lakers star and former Chicago Bulls icon, whose Nike shoes and sportswear deal remains a monster hit six years after his retirement from basketball.
Other racers on the list included MotoGP ace Valentino Rossi ($35m), NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Jr. ($34m), Raikkonen’s successor as F1 World Champion, Lewis Hamilton ($32m), and NASCAR's Jeff Gordon, who just made the list's $30m cutoff. Two-time F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso slipped just below that level this year, according to
Forbes.