HOCKENHEIM, Spain -- Amidst mounting speculation of a move to McLaren, Renault's Carlos Sainz wants the next contract he signs to be a two-year deal to avoid endless speculation about his future.
Sainz was loaned to Renault by Red Bull after three seasons driving for junior team Toro Rosso. His upward progression in the Red Bull programme has been blocked by the Max Verstappen-Daniel Ricciardo partnership, which now looks set to continue beyond 2018.
Sainz's future has always been a talking point in recent seasons and the Spaniard is hoping to avoid that in 2019.
"At this stage of the year, again, my future is uncertain like it has been in the last three, which means I'm used to it. I know how to live with it," Sainz said. "Hopefully I'll be looking forward to signing a two-year deal with my future team to make sure the next year I'm not in this position again.
"You are fed up of always hearing the same answer by a racing driver, but that's just our job. Our job is to make sure that when you put your helmet on, you have nothing in your head.
"You also actually don't have time to think about that when you're in a qualy lap or something like that. Off the track, I'm not going to say no, of course I know what's going on."
He went to add that he felt "in control" of his future despite the strong ties to Red Bull. With Renault linked with a move for Frenchman Esteban Ocon, who would have to join the team on a similar loan agreement with Mercedes, there is no guarantee Sainz will still be wearing yellow next season.
One suggestion which has continued to gain traction in recent weeks is that Sainz will move to McLaren, a team still uncertain of whether Fernando Alonso will remain for 2019. McLaren looks increasingly unlikely to retain the out-of-form Stoffel Vandoorne, meaning it could have a seat to fill regardless of what Alonso decides.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown has done little to quell the speculation, saying: "We think Carlos Sainz is a very good race car driver. This is the time of year where you talk to a lot of drivers as we have two seats that we are trying to fill," Brown explained.
"[Fernando] is not yet sure what he wants to do, what he wants to drive, so those are scenarios that we are working through and talking to a variety of drivers. But we keep those conversations internal and ultimately it's a bit of a group decision about what we will do with drivers."