diff --git a/pkg/kubelet/kubelet.go b/pkg/kubelet/kubelet.go
index b0c7b3e245f..80ba8a1acad 100644
--- a/pkg/kubelet/kubelet.go
+++ b/pkg/kubelet/kubelet.go
@@ -2059,7 +2059,7 @@ func (kl *Kubelet) updateRuntimeUp() {
 	}
 	// Only check specific conditions when runtime integration type is cri,
 	// because the old integration doesn't populate any runtime condition.
-	if kl.kubeletConfiguration.EnableCRI {
+	if kl.kubeletConfiguration.EnableCRI && kl.kubeletConfiguration.ContainerRuntime != "rkt" {
 		if s == nil {
 			glog.Errorf("Container runtime status is nil")
 			return