Kimi - McLaren my only option

Finn says if he's staying in F1 it's with his former team

Last updated: 29th October 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Kimi - McLaren my only option

Raikkonen: One F1 option

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Kimi Raikkonen has said that McLaren Mercedes are his "only" option to remain in Formula One next season.

The 2007 World Champion is as yet without a race seat for next year having agreed to part ways with Ferrari a year earlier than expected.

And although Toyota have made it clear they want the Finn, Raikkonen says he's only interested in returning to McLaren, for whom he raced between 2002 and 2006.

"Toyota has not even been discussed," Raikkonen told Finland's MTV3. "If I want to drive (F1) cars, then McLaren is the only option. I should know the situation in the next few days."

Speaking at Thursday's press conference ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Raikkonen also said he would like to do some more rallying.

The 30-year-old contested his home round of the World Rally Championship this summer having earlier taken part in three earlier non-championship events.

"If I do Formula One, it's going to be in the contract that I'm allowed to do it (rallying)," he said. "It's not going to hurt you. Any kind of driving is always going to give you some experience, so I don't see what's the issue.

"It's been working well this year, so as long as it doesn't disturb what you're doing in Formula One or whatever you do, I don't see that there's any problem."

However, Raikkonen said he could also opt for a year on the sidelines.

"I can if I want. I can do whatever I want, but like I said before, I haven't made my decision what I want to do yet," he said.

He added: "Basically I have a few different options and we will see what is the best one overall and then make my decision."