Sebastian Vettel insists he is not under "time pressure" to decide his next career move.
We reported that a July 31 deadline, tying in with an exit clause in Sergio Perez's contract, had been set for the quadruple world champion to decide whether to move to Racing Point for 2021.
"There is no time pressure," Vettel told German media on Thursday, one day before the supposed deadline.
"Maybe I will know in weeks, maybe it will take longer. For me the most important thing is that I make the right decision and that the package is right."
There are rumours Vettel may still be holding out for a Red Bull seat, even though his former bosses have said there is no room at the senior team.
However, if the protest lodged by Renault against the legality of Racing Point's 2020 car is rejected, Dr Helmut Marko says the junior team Alpha Tauri may run the same car as the senior Red Bull team in 2021.
"Everything depends on the protest," Ralf Schumacher told Sky Deutschland. "That will be crucial. It will all be very interesting.
"If Renault's protest is rejected, Red Bull will use four identical cars in 2021. And then it doesn't really matter which of the four cars he drives," Schumacher also told f1-insider.com.
When asked about the protest, Red Bull's Marko said: "First of all we have to get the judgement. That shouldn't happen before the race on Sunday."
And when also asked about the supposed July 31 deadline for Vettel, Marko added: "To my knowledge, he has more time to choose after that."
