Kimi Raikkonen will not participate in the 2010 Formula One campaign after failing to seal a contract with McLaren.
Finn fails to agree McLaren deal for 2010
Kimi Raikkonen will not participate in the 2010 Formula One campaign after failing to seal a contract with McLaren.
The Finn had been in discussions with the team after being released from the final year of his contract with Ferrari.
However, the 30-year-old was overlooked in favour of reigning world champion Jenson Button, and without the possibility of driving a competitive car next year, Raikkonen has opted to take a break.
"We had many meetings with McLaren but we couldn't find common ground on certain issues, and that the reason he will not be racing in Formula One next year," his manager Steve Robertson told Sky Sports News.
"Obviously, financial [issues] were part of it, but there were certain other issues that I can't really go into that didn't enable us to do a deal with McLaren."
Opportunity
Seats were up for grabs at each of the new-for-2010 teams - US F1, Lotus, Campos Meta and Manor Grand Prix - but were viewed as too much of a gamble for a former world champion.
"Kimi feels that McLaren offered him the best chance to win the races and compete for the championship next year," Robertson continued.
"He didn't feel another team that's available out there gives him that same opportunity.
"Kimi doesn't have to do anything - he's financially secure, he can pick and choose what he does, and he didn't feel that outside of McLaren, the other teams that were available could give him the same opportunity."
Robertson insisted Raikkonen was McLaren's preferred choice to partner Lewis Hamilton next year, despite the team later announcing the arrival of Jenson Button.
"Kimi was definitely their first choice," he added. "We've had many, many meetings with them. But they realised and we realised that we couldn't find common ground. Then they started to look at other drivers."
Raikkonen's plans for 2010 could include involvement in the World Rally Championship following his impressive debut in the series in a one-off outing earlier this year, while he has also been linked with a drive in the annual Le Mans 24 hour race.