As 2010 approaches, the Formula One driver line-up amongst theScreen shot 2009-11-18 at 3.24.48 AM various teams begins to resemble a high-stakes game of musical chairs. Brawn is now Mercedes: despite reports that this new German team might draw Michael Schumacher out of retirement for one last fling, his spokesbabe, Sabine Kehm denies it:

“You never say never in this sport, but you can rule it out at the moment, it’s highly unlikely,” Kehm told the Daily Mirror.

Screen shot 2009-11-18 at 3.31.27 AMMeanwhile The Iceman is out of F1, at least for 2010. Kimi agreed to make way for Fernando Alonso at Ferrari. He has been in talks with McLaren, but the parties could not reach agreement on Raikkonen’s salary, sponsor duties or freedom to participate in rallies.

Button, Button, who’s got the Button? Widespread reports indicate Jensen Button is close to signing with McClaren. However negotiations also continue with Brawn/Mercedes who are reluctant to be drawn into a bidding war. And Jarno Trulli? He’s testing for Toyota with NASCAR! Felipe Massa stays at Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton goes to McLaren. Stay tuned.