The sought-after pair were widely considered to be destined for Renault and McLaren respectively, but Toyota was attempting to upset expectations and provide some urgently needed star power to the underperforming team.
Asked about possible interest in Kubica, currently of BMW Sauber, Toyota team principal John Howett said his team had an 'even chance' of snatching Poland's star driver away from the grasps of Renault.
'I definitely would be interested,' Howett said. 'We are probably fighting with (Renault).' Renault will announce a new driver next week to replace Fernando Alonso, who will join Ferrari in 2010.
That had prompted speculation the Kubica deal had already been signed, but the driver subsequently said he was not certain of his destination next season.
Raikkonen will make way for Alonso, and has said he would only be interested in joining a title-contending team in 2010. That may count against Toyota, which has not had a single race win in eight years in F1. But Howett confirmed he had sounded out the Finn.
Since the onset of the global economic downturn and the withdrawal of manufacturers Honda and BMW from F1, there had been ongoing speculation that Toyota might also pull out, notwithstanding that the team had signed the new Concorde Agreement between teams and F1 organisers which ties them to the competition to the end of 2012.
Howett confirmed Friday that next year's budget was likely to be reduced, but that did not preclude the team from competing for high-salary drivers.
'Its going to be less than this year, but still a very significant and substantial budget,' Howett said. 'If we buy a cheaper driver, we can employ that in other areas - its a simple equation.' -- AP