Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff is confident Lewis Hamilton will sign a new contract to stay at the team next year, but says no decision has been made on who his teammate will be.
Mercedes has no drivers under contract for next year after Hamilton and teammate Valtteri Bottas signed a one-year deal for 2021.
Hamilton has spoken out about his desire to remain in Formula One next year and Wolff believes it is inevitable that a new deal will be struck.
"Yeah, that's the case," he told ESPN. "Our relationship between the team and him feels very natural today, through ups and downs.
"I can't imagine us and him going in different directions next year."
Hamilton has already made it clear that he does not want to repeat last year's contract talks, which stretched over the winter and ended in February, a month before the launch of this year's car.
Wolff accused the reason for the delay in focusing on the championship, as well as an inability to interact face-to-face due to travel restrictions and Hamilton testing positive for COVID-19 ahead of the final 2020 Grand Prix.
"It was a one-year deal because we didn't get to spend enough time with each other [to talk further]," Wolff said. "But that's what we're doing now, we're spending time with each other privately and obviously in the business environment here [on the race track]."
Speculation about a second seat at Mercedes for 2022 has been rife in recent weeks, with several news outlets reporting that the team has already decided to sign Williams driver George Russell over Hamilton's current teammate Bottas.
Asked directly whether a decision has been taken on Bottas' future, Wolff said: "I can 100 percent rule it out. No decision has been made, not even talks." "
Wolff said Bottas still has enough time to convince the team to keep it ahead of 2021.
"That's the charm of the situation," he said. "Her future is in her hands - it only comes down to her driving.
"We need a combination of the two best drivers in the team and no doubt we love Valtteri from a personality standpoint, what he adds to the team, and he needs to perform - that's what counts." .
"We've always been very transparent with that, and I think that's the most important thing. Be transparent with your drivers. There's no hidden agenda.
"The seat at Mercedes [for 2022] is between Valtteri and Jorge and it is a decision that we need to take in the best interest of the team."
Russell has been a member of Mercedes' junior driver program since 2017 and first contacted Wolff via email in 2014 when he was testing in the GP3 series.
He continues to be managed by Mercedes, but has raced for backmarker team Williams since 2019.
His three-year contract with Williams is set to expire at the end of the year, prompting speculation that he will be promoted to Mercedes.
Asked if Russell's results in F1 were getting too good to ignore and that he could move to another team if Mercedes does not offer him a contract for 2021, Wolff admitted: "Also plays a role in our thinking.
"If we decide for one or the other, we have to make sure it was the right decision for the team.
"Both still have great opportunities in their Formula One careers - we are not the only team they can go to and be successful.
"I get along very well with both and I enjoy their company, very different characters from a professional and personal standpoint, and they both deserve to be in a top car.