Ferrari has announced that they will not prevent Michael Schumacher from going to a rival team in Formula 1 for the 2010 season.

The Formula 1 legend who won 7 championships and has set countless records has been a consultant to Ferrari since retiring in 2006 and recently has said that he would be in that role for the next 3 years.

40 year old Michael Schumacher has been linked with a move to Mercedes who have taken over world champions Brawn and signed driver Nico Rosberg for the 2010 season.

Schumacher was almost going to drive for Ferrari in August after Felipe Massa was injured but this was not possible due to a neck injury that the German suffered in a motorcycle accident earlier this year.

Schumacher has now fully recovered from his neck injury and is very close to a much anticipated comeback to the Formula 1 which he dominated for such a long time.

“If he takes another road, our agreement will no longer be valid. You can’t work with a competitor and with us at the same time,” said Ferrari president Montezemolo.

“I still haven’t spoken to him about it. He is only a dear friend, not a team member. He is a consultant for our road cars.”

Schumacher agreed a new role with Ferrari over the summer, cutting his links with the F1 team to become an ambassador, consultant and test driver for the company’s road cars.