Haas to announce 2019 drivers before Suzuka

Speaking to reporters ahead of the Russian Grand Prix weekend, Steiner confirmed the driver decision for 2019 will be made when "two weeks is over in Japan and it will be within them. It will be within them.”

Word is that their two drivers have done enough to convince the American team to hang on to their services for another year.

Grosjean had a wayward spell that cost his team dear but has since made up for it with strong performances, while Magnussen has been solid if not spectacular.

Of Grosjean, whose on-track shenanigans saw his shares plummet, Steiner said, “Since he found the key as he says and he didn’t lose it again, I think he’s performing pretty well. He’s back to what he was before he had that dip in performance at the beginning of the season.”

One of the big talking points in the paddock is the glut of young talent knocking on the door with no place to race next year and, for many, the foreseeable future.

Asked if Mercedes proteges Esteban Ocon and George Russell would be considered for a drive, Steiner replied, "You always consider because they are both good drivers, but then again we need to look after ourselves and I think the problem is for Mercedes."

“They have too much talent and now they need to find a way to solve that problem. Why should that be a problem for the other people? It’s a good problem to have and they need to solve that one themselves,” added Steiner.

During the session with journos around midday in Sochi, Steiner also revealed that the team was considering Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of Brazilian F1 legend Emerson Fittipaldi, for a role with the team next year.

The team were interested in striking a deal with Fittipaldi earlier in the year before the 22-year-old crashed heavily during the Spa-Francorchamps round of the WEC. He broke both his legs in the accident but has since recovered and returned to his Indycar campaign.

“I spoke with Pietro actually last week,” continued Steiner. “He’s doing good now, he feels comfortable with no pain and now we started again to maybe do tests at the end of the year.”

“We haven’t come to a conclusion yet. He’s in Europe at the moment and we [re]started the dialogue at the airport actually. We said we will speak again after Japan when we are both back in the States.”

With regards to a reserve role for the Brazilian, Steiner explained, “We haven’t spoken about that yet and we need to go step by step.”