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Raikkonen linked with Citroen rally seat

ESPNF1 Staff
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Kimi Raikkonen to switch to WRC? © Sutton Images
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Kimi Raikkonen has been linked with a switch to the World Rally Championship(WRC) for 2010 after Citroen's rally boss Olivier Quesnel admitted a deal with the 2007 F1 world champion was a possibility.

Rumours surrounding Raikkonen's future began when the Finn was replaced at Ferrari by two-time world champion Fernando Alonso; and when Jenson Button moved to join Lewis Hamilton at McLaren, it looked likely that he would take a sabbatical from F1 for the 2010 season, with reports suggesting his contract at Ferrari would ensure a year away from the sport would be a lucrative one.

Quesnel denied that any agreement had been reached, but he admitted a deal was on the cards at Citroen.

"Nothing is signed, I never had Raikkonen on the telephone," Quesnel told French newspaper L'Equipe. "But it is more than a rumour; it is a real possibility."

Quesnel revealed that if Raikkonen did sign for Citroen, he would not be racing alongside Sebastien Loeb in the official team, but for the junior team, but he admitted he would be pleased to see the former F1 champion in the sport.

"He was not a [F1] world champion by chance," he said. "In Finland last year, he was quite astonishing at the wheel of a Super 2000 car. If he comes to WRC, it will be very good news for the rally in general."

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