If reports are accurate, when the driver’s line-up for the 2010 Formula One season is completed, one household name will not be included in it. After spending nine years in Formula One, Kimi Raikkonen will seek a different challenge next year in the form of the World Rally Championship. The news was first reported by MTV3, a Finnish broadcaster who has ties to Raikkonen.

Raikkonen’s interest in driving rally cars has been well-documented and the former F1 champ has even got a few rally races under his belt. After cutting ties with Ferrari, speculation surrounding Raikkonen’s future made headlines in and around the industry. There were reports linking him to Mercedes GP, taking up rallying instead, and even going on a year-long sabbatical.

Whatever the case may be – and whatever Raikkonen’s decision is – watching an F1 race without the Iceman is going to take some getting used to. Then again, if he does enter the world of the WRC and trades in his Ferrari F60 for a Ctiroen C4 – the car he is rumoured to be driving - then that’s something a lot of us will be looking forward to watching.

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