Nicholas Latifi took a swipe at "poor journalism" after a report emerged claiming he had decided what he will be doing next after being axed by Williams.
This will be the Canadian's final season in Formula 1 for now. Williams decided a few weeks ago that they had not seen enough from him to convince them that they needed to keep him around beyond the expiry of his current contract.
At that point, he was the only driver on the grid who had not scored a single point in 2022. That has now changed after an admirable drive in the truncated Japanese Grand Prix last time out, but still the general feeling is that he has a lot more to prove if he wants another shot in F1.
The inevitable question now that he is definitely dropping off the grid is what he will do next. One report this week went as far as to claim that he had already signed on the dotted line to make the switch to IndyCar for next season.
"Sounds like Chip Ganassi Racing has hired Nicholas Latifi to driver their fourth car in IndyCar in 2023," said reporter David Land in a video. "From my understanding, it's unclear whether it's full-time or not, I think a lot of people would jump to the conclusion that it would be a road course-heavy schedule for Latifi.
"My source seems to be under the impression Latifi will be a full-time driver for Chip Ganassi Racing, so make of that what you will. Certainly, Latifi comes with a boat load of Canadian cash which would shore up their finances... also, the car number he will supposedly use is 11."
But it appears that report may well be wide of the mark. That is what the racer himself has said, anyway, after being asked about it ahead of this weekend's United States Grand Prix in Texas.
Speaking to reporter Tim Hauraney, Latifi dismissed the claim and said that he has not yet chosen what would be the best next step for his career. "It's poor journalism... I haven't decided what I'm doing," the Canadian is reported to have said.
Earlier this month, talking about being let go by Williams, Latifi said: "I obviously would love to stay in F1, it's what I've been working towards for very good chunk of my life. The pinnacle of motorsport is where I want to be. But at the end of the day this is a result of performance based industry, it always has been, and unfortunately it just hasn't worked out this year for many different reasons."
