By Alan Baldwin

ABU DHABI, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Japanese stand-in Kamui Kobayashi is likely to secure a full-time race seat at Toyota next year after impressing team bosses in Sunday's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Asked whether the 23-year-old was now likely to take one of the team's 2010 slots, Toyota motorsport director John Howett told reporters: "Well, it looks like it, yes.

"We have to give (him) really serious consideration, he's really shown a good strong result."

Kobayashi made his debut in Brazil last month after Germany's Timo Glock was injured in the preceding Japanese Grand Prix, and battled to ninth place. On Sunday, in only his second race, he finished sixth for his first points.

He had started the sport's first day-to-night race in 12th place but still finished ahead of Italian team mate Jarno Trulli, who had been sixth on the grid. In the process, he also overtook new world champion Jenson Button.

"I was very impressed, we were very happy again," added Howett. "What we like is his real fighting spirit, not intimidated by anybody."

Kobayashi has been brought up through Toyota's young driver programme but had made little impact on the GP2 support series at past grands prix weekends.

"I think we always understood he was very good in terms of racing spirit, I think all through his career. But partly because the GP2 pace didn't look that competitive you are always hesitant about the risk," said Howett.

"I think that it's a definite lesson that sometimes we all should be braver in our driver choices and not go for the safer, risk-hedged decision," said Howett.

"He's a product of our own driver programme so therefore it's another positive reason, he's Japanese and we're a Japanese team. So there are lots of positives."

Trulli and Glock are both likely to leave the Cologne-based team, whose future remains clouded by speculation about Toyota's commitment to the sport following the exit in December last year of Japanese rivals Honda.

The team were rebuffed by BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica, who opted to join Renault instead, and have had no success in trying to lure Ferrari's 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen to them.