Sao Paulo - Ferrari's world champion Michael Schumacher has said he will not negotiate a new Formula One contract until the end of this year.
"At the moment there is no negotiating going on and I am not going to deal with this until the end of the year," Schumacher told the German news agency SID on Thursday.
"I do not know what offers my manager has for me but he has been told not to negotiate," the German driver said ahead of this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix.
Schumacher's contract with Ferrari finishes at the end of next year.
Italian sports daily Tuttosport reported that Toyota, who are set to begin racing next season, are keen to sign a world-class driver and were looking at Schumacher for 2003.
Schumacher also said he planned to talk to his Brazilian team mate Rubens Barrichello after an incident at the Malaysian grand prix.
Barrichello was upset to be overtaken by the German on a slippery rain-soaked track in Malaysia earlier this month.
"After Malaysia we had a difficult period in the team, " he said. "The best thing is to find a solution through a personal talk." - Reuters