Last Updated: Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:06
Ferrari chief Stefano Domenicali has rejected rumours Kimi Raikkonen will retire from the sport if he wins this year's championship.
Raikkonen took glory in 2007 after beating the McLaren duo of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso by a solitary point after a thrilling climax to the season in Brazil.
The Finn has recovered from a disappointing eighth place in Australia to win both the Malaysian and Spanish Grands Prix, as well as finishing second in Bahrain, to put himself in a strong position to retain his crown, and he now heads the standings by nine points from Hamilton.
Keke Rosberg, himself a world champion in 1982, had recently suggested that Raikkonen might decide to call it quits if he did go on to win consecutive world titles.
However, Domenicali has moved to dismissed the speculation and insists his star driver is committed to the team.
"I have heard this rumour and there is not a grain of truth to it," he told Switzerland's Motorsport Aktuell.
"Kimi is motivated from head to toe and I know he is not thinking of retiring."