Dennis Remains Tight-Lipped over 2002 Line-Up

McLaren boss Ron Dennis is remaining tight-lipped over their driver line-up for the 2002 season, but the Brit admitted he understood all the speculation surrounding his team.

"I am certainly very aware of everything that is being written in the media," Dennis admitted. "It is no more than rumour and speculation. We know exactly where we are going on our driver line-up."

The Woking-based team are yet to announce who will drive for them in 2002, and while Scot David Coulthard is believed to have signed an extension of his contract, the future of Mika Hakkinen is still a mystery. The two-time World Champion has already admitted he has been thinking about retiring but according to reports the Finn is willing to stay at McLaren for one more year.

Dennis admitted McLaren knew when they will make the official announcement about their drivers, and added that he understood the media speculation.

"We know almost exactly to the day when we are intending to put out a press release and explain what our strategy is. I said several races ago it is a bit more elaborate than just the selection of Formula One drivers and as and when we are ready, we will tell everyone.

"It's not a particularly newsworthy time at the moment and I can understand why lots of people are speculating."

Dennis's comments come after rumours in the Hungarian Grand Prix paddock indicated that Italian Jarno Trulli could be set to replace Hakkinen at the team. The Jordan driver, however, said he expected to make an announcement about his future before the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.