Diniz Confirms Talks with Prost

Brazilian Pedro Diniz confirmed on Friday he is in talks with the Prost Grand Prix Formula One team.

However, the Sauber driver denied rumours sweeping the paddock that his father Abilio is set to invest in the struggling French team.

Diniz said he had held talks with team principal Alain Prost about partnering Frenchman Jean Alesi next year when the team will be powered by Ferrari engines.

But he said he knew nothing of speculation that his father would buy a majority share in the French team after Prost's major sponsor Gauloises Blondes announced their withdrawal last month.

Abilio Diniz is a Brazilian entrepreneur who owns Brazil's second biggest supermarket chain, Grupo Pao de Acucar, and helps pay for his son to compete in Formula One.

"I have had very close contact with Prost for next year," Pedro Diniz said. "It should be better there than it was there this year, as they have the Ferrari contact.

"I don't know when it will go ahead, as there are still a lot of important decisions that are floating around that need to be made. But I know nothing about my father buying the team."

Diniz was speaking at a news conference with his current boss Peter Sauber sitting alongside him. Sauber, discussing his driver line-up for 2001, made no reference to the Brazilian.

"We have been testing a lot in Mugello and Finn Kimi Raikkonen has been very good," Sauber said. "We are very impressed by him. We will think about him in our future a lot."