Red Bull name Kimi Raikkonen, Daniel Ricciardo & Jean-Eric Vergne as 2014 candidates

A tug-of-war between Red Bull and Lotus is developing for Kimi Raikkonen's services in 2014 with the World Champions having confirmed to Sky Sports F1 that the Finn is one of three candidates to replace Mark Webber.

However, while aware that Red Bull are making a serious play to entice his star driver to Milton Keynes, Raikkonen's current boss, Eric Boullier, suggested a move to the World Champions might not actually appeal to the famously laconic and laid-back Finn. Asked by Ted Kravitz what Lotus needed to do to convince Raikkonen to stay, Boullier said: "I think we did it over the last two years. He just needed a little bit of reassurance about what the plans are for the future because we are in some ways a new team, at least new ownership, and so far we have respected our ambition and our plan. "So just [it's about] sitting around the table. I know Red Bull is pushing hard to get him on board but I'm not sure this is very comfortable and maybe not as logical for Kimi to go there." Furthermore, while Boullier acknowledged the appeal for Raikkonen of joining the grid's pre-eminent outfit, the Frenchman intriguingly claimed that his driver had assured him that he had no reason to leave if they could prove themselves capable of becoming serious Championship contenders. "Red Bull is attractive; it's a World Champion team with a lot of resources," Boullier acknowledged. "But Kimi's mind is more about having a more comfortable environment. Obviously a winning car [as well]. So if he's convinced we can keep our progress to be a title-contending team in the future, he has no reason to go there and he already confirmed with us [that would be the case]."