Kimi Raikkonen is confident of gaining an advantage by starting🗹 Sunday's United States Grand Prix from the clean side of the grid despite struggling to P5 in Formula 1 qualifying at the Circuit of The Americas.

Raikkonen slipped back to fifth in the closing stages of Q3 after struggling with his final f♎lying lap, finishing three places behind Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel.

The Finn said he struggled to find enough space on-track during qualifying, preventing him from hooking up a perfect lap as he ꦿwould have liked.

"It was a bit tricky. I had some decent laps but I never really had good places," Raikko𒀰nen said.

"Some laps places we🦩re OK, others I struggled to get them right, losing lap time. It was tricky to put one decent lap together.

"It was not too bad, but for sure we try ❀to pull everything as it should be, it would be a bit better. But it is what it is"

Raikkonen is ♏happy to gain an advantage by starting on the clean side of the grid for the uphill run to Turn 1 at COTA, saying it traditionally proves crucial at lights out.

"I think to be honest, I think fifth place, in here, it makes qu🐈ite a big difference what side you're on, at least usually," Raikkonen said.