Gene Haas has suggested Romain Grosjean has signed an extension for 2018 by saying his team will have an unchanged line-up next season.
Grosjean was joined by Dane Kevin Magnussen for Haas' second in Formula One, with the Dane signing a multi-year deal. Grosjean, who is out of contract at the end of the year, was the team's original signing ahead of its debut campaign in 2015 and has claimed the team's best results in his time with the team so far.
With one Mercedes and both Ferrari seats still yet to be confirmed for 2018 there is growing speculation about a busy driver market later this year. When Grosjean first confirmed his move to Haas, a team which enjoys a strong partnership with engine supplier Ferrari, he called it a "good step" towards being in a position to win championships, and has frequently been linked with the Italian team since.
However, speaking to the official F1 website, team owner Haas seemed confident the Frenchman will remain where he is.
"We will run with the same drivers that we have this year again next year," he said. "That is a given. And given the other continuity aspects, we should be better racers next season."
Grosjean scored all of Haas' 29 points in its debut campaign, with former teammate Esteban Gutierrez failing to add one of his own. The team has 29 at the mid-way point the current campaign, 11 of which belong to Gutierrez's replacement Magnussen -- something Haas feels justifies the decision to sign the Danish driver.
"Esteban was a good driver. He was as fast as Romain in practice, but I think that Kevin has an edge in terms of race experience. He can score points and that was the key for bringing him on board. Kevin can grab points and Romain can too.
"We now have 29 points. Last year around this time we also had 29 points, but did not score for the rest of the season. So now if we can score another 29 points by Abu Dhabi, that would be a great position."