Place the always blunt Simon Cowell on a program that airs late, late at night and what do you get? A very relaxed, humorous and somewhat revealing interview with the American Idol judge.

During his sit-down last night with Craig Ferguson, the Brit first likened frenemy Ryan Seacrest to a “sausage dog.” (Cowell would, of course, be considered the bigger German Shepherd.) When the Late Late Show host joked about the analogy, the 49-year-old quickly laughed it off and said “not that kind.” He did, though, continue to compare Ryan to one of those annoying “little dogs” gets on your leg and “does all that stuff” to get your attention. (Thank you for that visual image.)

When asked “what the hell” he was thinking when it came to the fourth judge, Simon tried to make the audience believe that things were “fine” and that he really did like Kara DioGuardi. But he also admitted that having another body around added to the lengthy commentary factor. “Paula used to talk a lot last year, now you’ve got Paula times 5. So we don’t actually get to say anything.” (Isn’t that what happens when you bring on more people?) Cowell said that he and Randy Jackson “literally sit back with these monologues the two of them come up about. ‘The ant that finds the mountain will swim the lake….’”

Although it’s not yet known whether we’ll see Kara again next year, Simon’s future with the program is uncertain as well. “We always said that when the contract ends, that would be it,” Simon hinted. He did later add that a conversation hasn’t even happened yet, to which Ferguson replied, “I think you’re having that conversation right now.”

So what do you think of Simon’s comments? Do you think he’s actually going to leave…or is he just aiming for more money? Do you believe he really likes Kara…or will she be gone by Season 9?