'We did the most we could with the package we had', that was Kimi Raikkonen's assessment following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, the final round in the 2009 FIA F1 World Championship and the Finn's last event with the Scuderia.

Raikkonen, who only qualified eleventh, slipped back a place in the race, eventually bringing his Ferrari F60 home in twelfth, one spot behind Heikki Kovalainen, who he is tipped to replace at McLaren-Mercedes in 2010.

The 'ice-man' thus ends a tough year - in which Ferrari were never really on the pace - sixth in the drivers' championship, having notched up 48 points in total, the one highlight, his win at the Belgian Grand Prix.

"We knew we did not have a car that was competitive here. It was definitely not a good weekend, but I don’t think any of us have anything to reproach ourselves for," reflected the 2007 F1 world champion. "We did the most we could with the package we had.

"At the start, the track was a bit slippery and that cost me a place to [Kamui] Kobayashi, who was very quick today. Then, when the two Brawns were back ahead of me, after their first pit stop, our race was definitely compromised and a points’ finish became impossible.

"It’s a shame to end my time with Ferrari with this result, but this year we have never been in a position to fight for the win at every race, as I would have wished."

Meanwhile Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali praised Raikkonen and apologised for the squad's failure to give him a truly competitive car in '09.

"This was Kimi’s last race with us and again today he gave it his all," Domenicali continued. "We are very disappointed that this year, we did not give him a competitive car and I thank him for never having thrown in the towel, in fact, fighting even harder when the situation was at its trickiest."

Chief engineer, Chris Dyer echoed those sentiments and added that the Finn is an 'extraordinary' driver: "It was a very disappointing day. We knew after the qualifying result that it would be very tough and so it turned out.

"It’s an unpleasant way to end our relationship with Kimi and we are very disappointed about it. It would have been nice to have given him a good result as a send off to thank him for everything we have done together over the past three years.

"We wish him all the best for the future, whatever he decides to do. He is an extraordinary driver and we will always have fond memories of him," Dyer summed-up.