Liam Lawson admits it is not "definite" that he will be on the Formula 1 grid in 2025.
Red Bull consultant Dr Helmut Marko caused a stir a few days ago by revealing that the brand’s reserve will "definitely" be racing a Red Bull-branded F1 car next year.
Team boss Christian Horner, however, disagreed - and Marko backtracked.
"I think I said that he will be in a Formula 1 car next year," he told Viaplay.
"It is known that we have an option on him, but only if we can guarantee him a seat in Formula 1. We will decide in September what exactly we are going to do."
A sure sign that he will be in one of the four Red Bull cars, however, is that Marko has given an early "no" to any suggestion that Lawson might be available to immediate replace Logan Sargeant at Williams.
"We have our own plans for Liam in the near future," he told Auto Motor und Sport.
It all sounds promising for 22-year-old Lawson - but he’s not getting carried away yet.
"Until it’s definite, anything can happen," the New Zealander rookie told Viaplay at Zandvoort. "For me at the moment it’s a matter of waiting.
"Of course I want a full-time seat, but I don’t know yet when exactly that will happen. Of course I hope it will be the case next year."
He admits it’s been a frustrating period since he contested 5 grands prix in the injured Daniel Ricciardo’s place at Alpha Tauri last year.
"Yes, when you’ve already been in there, it’s pretty frustrating," Lawson confirmed. "But that’s also just part of it. I don’t really mind waiting, as long as I get that seat in the end."
Lawson even managed to open his F1 career points account - with a P9 at the demanding Singapore circuit last year. "I’m proud of it," he said on the sidelines of the Dutch GP, "but my goal is to become a full-time Formula 1 driver.
"At the moment, that hasn’t happened yet. I will only be really proud when it does."