Toyota play down Massa link

Toyota have refuted speculation that they are lining up a move for Felipe Massa, while the Brazilian also denied he was in talks with the Japanese team.

The Daily Mail claimed that the Ferrari driver had 'opened preliminary negotiations with Toyota last weekend' - but ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix - Tadashi Yamashina quashed these rumours.

Toyota's team principal revealed that their 2008 lineup would only be confirmed at "the end of the season".

The German news agency dpa reports that Tadashi said: "We continue to contemplate all of the possibilities. We have still made no decision."

However, when quizzed about the Massa link he laughed and responded: "I know nothing about it".

It appears likely that the key mover in the silly season will be Fernando Alonso. The British media claims that the Spaniard has already agreed a £20 million deal with Ferrari.

But Massa has denied the verity of these reports by claiming that he still has a future in the Scuderia's cockpit.

The 26-year-old driver told the Chinese news agency Xinhua: "This story of me going to Toyota next season does not exist".

Souce - http://www.planetf1.com

Fernando Alonso will be drive Ferrari in 2008

Fernando Alonso is reportedly off to Ferrari next season in a £20m per year deal, while Felipe Massa is moving to Toyota.

Alonso's position at McLaren has become more untenable with the FIA's confirmation that it was the Spaniard's emails that resulted in the team being stripped of their 2007 Constructors' Championship points and handed a £50m fine.

And with Ron Dennis admitting that his relationship with his driver is "extremely cold" and that Alonso's unhappy with the team's equality policy, the double World Champion's time at McLaren appears to be running out - and fast.

In fact, according to the News of the World, Alonso has just three more races as a McLaren driver having already agreed to join Ferrari.

According to the tabloid, the Spaniard has agreed a £20 million a year deal to join Ferrari for 2008, leaving Felipe Massa out in the cold.

Massa, though, is already making plans for the future with the Daily Mail claiming that he 'opened preliminary negotiations with Toyota last weekend.'

The newspaper went on to say that Massa's decision to leave Ferrari could be based on team boss Jean Todt's pending (and unwanted) retirement in order to make way for Ross Brawn's return.

The Ferrari tech director, who is nearing the end of his year-long sabbatical, is expected to return to the Scuderia next season as team boss. And should this happen it could place Todt's son, who is also Massa's manager, in an uncomfortable position.

'Massa is acutely aware that if Jean Todt, as expected, loses an impending internal power struggle within Ferrari, he will be instantly vulnerable as he is managed by the Frenchman's son, Nicholas,' the Mail surmised.

On a personal note, P-F1 believes Alonso would do well at Ferrari... after all he already knows all about the car and how to set it up.

Source - http://www.planetf1.com