British hopeful Oliver Rowland says he is in talks with Williams regarding a race seat with the Grove-based outfit in 2018, but the team denies any discussions.
On Friday, Rowland's management team issued a statement claiming he is a late contender for a drive coveted first and foremost by Robert Kubica and Paul di Resta, with Sergey Sirotkin a possible dark horse.
"F1 Renault development driver Oliver Rowland is in talks with Williams about securing a seat for Formula 1 in 2018.
"The 25-year-old hasn't been considered an option until now, with Williams still undecided of who to put in the car next year."
Rowland confirmed his team's statement.
"My team is in talks with Williams, as they are with other teams. British car, British driver it fits well.
"Lots of drivers seem to be in the frame for 2018, so we will just have to see what happens."
The comments were news to Williams however , with a representative of the team telling Motorsport.com that there had been no discussions with Rowland and that the 25-year-old was not in contention for a race seat in 2018.
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