Mercedes Benz boss Norbert Haug has warned any potential drivers seeking a seat with McLaren next season that if they’re seeking money, McLaren is the wrong place for them. Haug has been speaking to Autosport this weekend where he discussed the latest options for McLaren to replace the struggling Heikki Kovalainen, those being Nico Rosberg, Jenson Button and Kimi Raikkonen.

Raikkonen is understood to be a strong contender for next season, however as we previously reported, Toyota are also currently chasing the Ferrari driver, albeit recently admitting he may be too expensive for them. Haug told Autosport,

“Kimi is an option, but there are lots of options around. One thing is for sure though – guys who are out for money are not the right ones for us – whoever it may be.

I won’t name anyone, but we want to have full commitment from someone who is success-oriented, not someone saying ‘I am a big name, pay me a lot of money and I will drive for you.’”

It’s hard not to read between the lines in the above statement – an obvious “name” he maybe thinking of would be Raikkonen, seeing as he has been playing hard ball already with Toyota. Haug continued,

“The team has to be convinced that a driver is hungry, motivated, focused, and that his first thought is not to get more money.”

Haug believes that any new potential driver has to realise what McLaren can offer them, rather than the other way round. Pointing to the latter half of the 2009 season, Haug was quick to note McLaren’s success,

“We have shown our level of competitiveness – Lewis [Hamilton] has scored race wins and podiums, and beaten the guys that have been going for the title this year.

It shows that we are going in the right direction. We have stabilised this year, and we have a seat to offer in a race-winning car. There are probably three, four, five teams maximum that can offer that.”

Next season will certainly be a tasty one if the trend continues from 2009. Both Ferrari and McLaren have seen massive improvements towards the end of the season – in addition Brawn GP, Red Bull and even the unlikely Force India have shown they can play with the big boys.