Wheldon: F1 deal didn't seem right

The Indy 500 and IRL champion this week opted to stay in IndyCar racing next year, instead of a possible move to Formula One.

The 27 year-old says that he wasn't motivated enough by a switch to the sport, and has chosen to switch IRL teams and sign with Ganassi Racing for 2006.

"We were at one point talking to a Formula One team or two, it just wasn't for me," Wheldon said. "You can have people approach you, but your heart has got to be 100 percent into it, and mine really wasn't. The deal didn't seem right to me, and like I say, my heart didn't feel like that was the thing to be doing.

"Certainly I love to race, and with the Formula One opportunity, that wasn't going to be around. But the problem with Formula One to me nowadays is you've got to get a deal that's realistic for yourself, and that wasn't a possibility."

Wheldon says he was considering moving to the sport as a test driver initially to get up to speed for a possible race drive in 2007, however he decided that it wasn't the right option for him.

He added: "Well, to be quite frank, when we started conversations it was always my intention to be a test driver because I don't know many of the tracks there, and with the test ban situation, it really didn't seem viable.

"Whenever I do something, I always want to run at the front; I'm definitely not going to be there to follow the field or run with the pack. I certainly want to run very competitively, and I thought that would be the best way to do it.

"But it didn't seem - my heart wasn't completely into that situation, and I do think very, very highly of this series [the IRL]. I love the Indianapolis 500. That's a race that I very, very much enjoy, and I'm looking forward to next year."

"I do love racing in America, I love the Indianapolis 500 and I love being part of the series."