Ferrari has 'deadline' for Raikkonen decision

Jun.22 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen's quest to keep his Ferrari seat took another backwards step in Austria.

The Finn, pushing to have the 2016 'option' in his contract triggered, struggled in qualifying and then crashed heavily at the start of Sunday's race.

It follows the spin in Canada that cost Ferrari a podium place and angered boss Maurizio Arrivabene.

On Sunday, stewards decided not to apportion blame, but Fernando Alonso said he only collided with Raikkonen after the Ferrari driver lost control due to wheelspin.

"I was lucky not to hit him on the head," said Alonso, who like Raikkonen was checked in the medical centre after the serious crash.

"It was a bit of a strange one as he must have lost his car in fifth gear," the Spaniard added.

Ferrari boss Arrivabene admitted he did not know the exact reason for the crash.

"When I first looked at the pictures I thought Fernando had touched Kimi," he said, "but that's not true."

Then in Ferrari's official post-race statement, the Italian did not mention Raikkonen even once.

Kimi himself said the wheelspin at such high speed was "unusual". "Suddenly (I) went left and ended up there".

Arrivabene told reporters: "Unfortunately there was no onboard footage from Fernando, so we need to trust Kimi. He said that the wheels spun, that's it."

The details of the crash aside, it is clear it came at the worst possible moment for the 2007 world champion, amid Ferrari's hot deliberations about the future.

Asked when he is going to decide the identity of Sebastian Vettel's teammate for 2016, Arrivabene answered: "When the time is right, both for us and for him (Raikkonen).

"It's not about what happened (in Austria) yesterday or today, although of course we have a deadline but I'm not going to say when it is."

Another bad sign for Raikkonen is that his incidents in Canada and now Austria were witnessed first-hand by Sergio Marchionne, the Ferrari president.

"Kimi should not be underestimated," Marchionne said on Sunday, "as he is a world champion. He has given and he gives this team a lot.

"He is currently in a difficult situation, but we are here to support him."

But Marchionne was also quoted by Italy's Corriere della Sera: "His future depends on him -- he must decide whether he brings the results or whether he gives up."

World champion turned outspoken pundit Jacques Villeneuve thinks Ferrari will not rush its final decision.

"Kimi does not have another good team to go to," he is quoted by the Finnish broadcaster MTV3, "and Ferrari knows it. So why would they sign him quickly?"

Villeneuve also said there are doubts about the leading candidate to replace Raikkonen; another Finn, Valtteri Bottas.

"He (Bottas) has done some great races," the Canadian said, "but he is sometimes behind Felipe (Massa). He is a fast driver, but is he better than Kimi?"