Was Hulkenberg ever in the running for Red Bull drive?

It is believed Haas is in advanced negotiations with the Renault reject, but reports indicate Hulkenberg is also interested in being Max Verstappen's 2020 teammate.

There were mixed 'noises' coming out of the Red Bull-pen with regards to such to this Silly Season development

Red Bull is not yet shutting the door on Nico Hulkenberg but suggested that opting for the 32-year-old would be a "coservative" option for the team that prefer to develop drivers through the programme headed by Helmut Marko and then introduce the chosen ones to F1 via Toro Rosso.

In the early days of the Red Bull F1 adventure, there were, of course, times when they did opt for experience above youth, David Coulthard and Mark Webber spring to mind.

But, inadvertently or not, adding more water to the apparently invisible fire, Horner explained, "It is unlikely that we will hire a driver from outside of our squad."

However, he added, "We are watching the market. If we feel that none of our drivers can do the job, we will act. It's always easy to be conservative, but sometimes you have to take risks," he said.

"Young drivers like Alex are a risk, but we showed in the past with Vettel and Verstappen that risk can pay off very well. Of course we are monitoring the situation externally, which is how we got Mark Webber.

"But we are mainly looking within our own talent programme," added the Red Bull team boss.

Red Bull has said that Alex Albon, who has replaced the struggling Pierre Gasly as of Spa, is only guaranteed the seat for the rest of 2019.

Christian Horner told Auto Motor und Sport. "Then we'll take stock. He has nine races to prove himself."

Furthermore, when asked at Spa by Auto Bild if Renault refugee Hulkenberg actually has a chance, Marko answered bluntly: "No."

Meanwhile, Hulkenberg is believed to be within days of being signed up for 2020 by the American team Haas and told reporters at Spa, "In terms of 2020, I'm personally relaxed."