The gap between Ferrari and the two teams in front of the defending F1 champions has widened rather than narrowed in recent races, the Italian team's boss Jean Todt said yesterday.

"It's true that we've been moving backwards in the last few races," Todt said in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung newspaper ahead of next weekend's German GP. "We're simply too slow."

Ferrari trail Renault and McLaren in the constructors standings while seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher is third in the driver's championship, far behind Renault's Fernando Alonso and McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen.

"Our opponents are able to drive their fastest laps at the end of the race while we're struggling after about 20 laps," Todt said.

Todt said it was nevertheless possible that Ferrari could make a "jump forward" at Hockenheim.

He also rejected speculation that BAR driver Jenson Button would move to Ferrari next season.

"There is zero per cent truth to that," Todt said.

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