Kiwi F1 driver Brendon Hartley's job appears to be safe, for now.
According to one of his Toro Rosso team's bosses, Dr Helmut Marko, the Red Bull driver was on thin ice after a string of lacklustre results in his debut season as a full-time driver.
However, Hartley's most recent effort at the Canadian Grand Prix, where he qualified 12th on the grid before being undone by an unfortunate crash, helped renew Marko and his colleagues' faith in the Palmerston North-product.
"If the trajectory had not improved, then we would have had to look somewhere for an alternative," Marko told the Germany motorsport-magazine.com.
"But that's not the case and Brendon is now competitive."
An oversteer by William's Lance Stroll at the Montreal track resulted in Hartley being shoved into the barriers and subsequently taken to hospital for a check-up.
The 28-year-old was cleared of any injury and will be available for the upcoming French Grand Prix.
Marko's vote of support is critical to Hartley's cause. The Austrian runs Red Bull's driver development programmes and is responsible for unearthing some of F1's premier talent in recent years, including Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen.
Teenage Formula two sensation Lando Norris had reportedly been in Toro Rosso's sights but his McLaren team refused to release him on anything more than a loan basis.
Hartley is also said to be in competition with French co-driver Pierre Gasly for a long-term spot on the team.
He currently sits 18th in the overall drivers championship with a single point to his name.
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