Chilton may not have to pay for drive in 2015?

Max Chilton is confident he will remain a Formula 1 driver next season and reckons he may not necessarily have to bring money to stay with Marussia, providing, that is, the team remains ninth in the Constructors' Championship.

Marussia are currently ahead of both Caterham and Sauber, thanks to the two points Jules Bianchi scored in Monaco back in May - the first time the Banbury-based outfit had ever got into the top-ten - and that result could prove crucial for Chilton's future.

"We haven't really looked into it yet," Chilton said when asked about 2015. "We want to stay with the team. I think they have got a good little future, especially if we can hold off Sauber for ninth [in the Constructors].

"That will really build our momentum because that is a big help to the team financially at the end of the year if we can do that. It will help us develop the car for the following year. Also, like a lot of these things, it filters down from the top and if there are a lot of rumours at the top and a lot of people moving around you don't really know where you stand until then.

"I don't really focus on that at all, however, until quite a bit later on in the year."

Quizzed on if he needs to score points to stay, he added: "Not necessarily because as everyone knows we need a bit of a fluke race to get the points. Okay we need to do well to beat the others to get to those points, but I have had good races this year. I started off very strong.

"The last few I agree haven't been particularly great. But I think we know we have got some problems there. I have been consistent and I have had some good results. It is just when I had my 13th in Bahrain it wasn't fully on my side, the attrition wasn't so much. I don't think that is a must."

As for if he will need to bring cash again, he replied: "Not necessarily. I think if the team gets this ninth then we might not need to worry about that so much.

"I haven't really looked into it, but I'd like to think if I have helped the team to develop over the last couple of years, then they would help me out."

Pushed on if the team has told him that could be the case, he noted that nothing has been said to that effect.

"No, this is just me thinking about the bigger picture as everyone else here. I have literally not looked into next year at all

"We have got a lot bigger things going on at the moment..."

Like?

"Such as drivers being drivers and the team moving forward," he stated.