Sauber boss Fred Vasseur believes running a Ferrari junior driver such as Charles Leclerc would make sense for the Swiss outfit.
Sauber recently extended its engine contract with the Italian outfit, after canceling its plans to run Honda power next season.
While its contract with Maranello does not include the right for the Scuderia to impose one of its junior drivers at the Hinwill-based team, Vasseur is nevertheless open to the idea as Ferrari considers Sauber a de facto destination for its young talent.
"As a team, it would make sense to have someone like Leclerc or other young drivers," the recently appointed Sauber team principal told Motorsport.com.
"It is a bit too early to speak about drivers, to be honest.
"We had to close the [engine] deal quite quickly. It would be a mistake to mix the drivers into the discussion. But we will have the discussion in the next few weeks."
Ferrari currently has two drivers targeting a full-time seat in F1 in the near future: Leclerc and Antonio Giovinazzi.
"The engines for Sauber are a way to create a kind of junior team for our young drivers," Marchionne said in Hungary.
"We have two great young talents, but to secure the future of Ferrari, we need the chance to train them somewhere.
"We need space for them, so it's a great idea and we're working on it," Marchionne added.
With Sauber's Marcus Ericsson enjoying a close relationship with the team's owners, teammate Pascal Wehrlein could find himself as the odd man out at the end of the season, with either Leclerc or Giovinazzi replacing the German for 2018.
"I think it will be difficult to do it before September but that could be a good target," concluded Vasseur.
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