Now Brawn lauds Kimi

Brawn was quoted in Friday's Gazzetta dello Sport as saying Raikkonen is the man most likely to take over Schuey's mantle as the king of F1. Kimi was runner-up in last year's championship.

"Raikkonen has shown he is [most likely], more than anyone," said Brawn. "It was evident last year, and in Spa we saw that now he has the tools for the job. He is an exceptional driver, he doesn't appear to make many errors."

Raikkonen ended Schumacher's winning streak with victory in the recent Belgian Grand Prix, although the German clinched his seventh world title at Spa. Schumacher has a contract until the end of 2006 with Ferrari, but McLaren's Raikkonen is in the mix to replace him.

Jean Todt, Ferrari's general director, told F1 Racing: "I like Kimi. He's quick, naturally talented. I like Kimi's style, but for the moment it's really only from a spectator's point of view. When the time comes, I'll decide to go for a certain guy, and that might be Kimi."

However, Todt's quotes could also be viewed as rhetoric aimed at destabilising McLaren, one of its main threats next year... Renault's Fernando Alonso has also been touted as a possible Schumacher replacement.