Stake team principal Jonathan Wheatley maintains Max Verstappen will remain in the F1 drivers' championship hunt "as long as it's numerically possible" for him to clinch a fifth consecutive crown.
The Red Bull driver is attempting to emulate Michael Schumacher's feat of winning five in a row, which the German achieved with Ferrari between 2000 and 2004.
However, earlier in the campaign, the 68-time grand prix winner looked as good as out of contention, given Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris' considerable points advantage and the delta in performance between the dominant McLaren MCL39 and Verstappen's RB21.
However, a floor upgrade delivered by Red Bull at the Italian Grand Prix has transformed the Dutchman's fortunes and vaulted him back into the title fight.
Having slashed Piastri's points lead from 104 to 40 in just four rounds, Verstappen is in the ascendancy and looking ever more likely to capitalise on Red Bull's renewed performance following an imperious United States Grand Prix weekend.
Wheatley, who worked alongside the four-time F1 drivers' champion at the Milton Keynes-based squad until last season, was quick to not rule him out, telling media, including RacingNews365: "As long as it's numerically possible, it's possible.
"I get it, because they [Red Bull] were also not competitive. Of course, more competitive than we [Stake] were in those races, but not as competitive as McLaren.
"Truth is, as long as the points are numerically possible, and this is how we race, as long as it's numerically possible, then it's possible."
As the former Red Bull sporting director, Wheatley worked closely with Verstappen as he picked up the first three of his titles.
And the Briton had a word of warning for Piastri and Norris amid the shrinking deficit: "Is it probable? Not normally, but Max tends to rewrite the rules to suit himself, and has done his whole career."
The 58-year-old also explained that he is not surprised to see Red Bull become a resurgent force, having struggled for much of the campaign.
However, he did muse that the Laurent Mekies-led team could be lamenting itself for the delay in unlocking the potential of the RB21.
"Red Bull is a class racing team," Wheatley added. "Max Verstappen is perhaps the best driver in the world.
"The fact that they've found some performance in the car, I think they're probably kicking themselves that they didn't find it sooner.
"But I'm not surprised that they've been able to do that. In the years that I worked there, quite often there was a big turnaround between Friday night and Saturday in terms of performance.
"So I think if I was McLaren, I'd be looking in my rear view mirror."
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