Ferrari boss Jean Todt says he would never have bet on Kimi Raikkonen becoming World champion when the Italian team were struggling with reliability earlier in the season.

Finn Raikkonen took the drivers’ title by one point fr-om McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso after winning the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix last Sunday.

“To tell the truth, I would not have bet on this victory,” Todt said at a title-winning party at the Tuscan track of Mugello. “For us, 2007 was a year of transition in many ways. The team was not cemented and we paid for it with the reliability, but I hope we will not repeat this next year.”

Raikkonen must wait until a hearing on November 15 to be sure he is World champion after McLaren launch-ed an appeal against the decision not to penalise three drivers in Sao Paulo because of fuel irregularities.

Should the three drivers have their results nullified, McLaren’s Hamilton would win enough points to be crowned champion instead.

“The drivers’ standings are not yet definitive. But for us, what is more important is to have won the World Championship on the track and no one can take that away from us,” Todt added.

Ferrari wrapped up the constructors’ title after Mc-Laren were stripped of team points when found guilty of benefiting from the possession of Ferrari secrets.