Both Nicholas Latifi and Nyck de Vries have dismissed rumors that they are currently fighting for the Williams seat. In Barcelona, current Formula E driver de Vries made his debut on a race weekend in F1 - replacing Canadian Latifi.

Last week, a well-known Canadian journalist claimed that a deal for the 27-year-old Dutchman de Vries to replace Latifi had already been done - something later denied. "When I saw the report, I kind of laughed a little bit because obviously that wasn't the case - I'm still here," Latifi said.

De Vries also downplayed the rumor. "The Williams press lady told me about it, but I don't follow the rumors on social media," he told Dutch publication Formule 1.

However, he did not hide the fact that he was happy to have managed to overcome Latifi in what could be a crucial moment in his career. "We are in a competitive sport," he commented. "In the end, your teammate is the first person you are compared to, but I didn't have a specific goal of beating him."

When asked if the final result gives a boost to his aspirations in Formula One, de Vries said he has "no idea." "I don't know what the future holds - I can't control that," stated the Mercedes Formula E driver.

"Let me put it this way - normally I don't get so nervous. When you have an opportunity like this, you don't just want to participate, you want to show what you can do," he continued

Former Dutch F1 driver Giedo van der Garde, however, thinks the chances that de Vries is about to topple Latifi are "very small." "If you can show what he showed immediately against someone who has been in Formula 1 for three years, hats off - really," he commented to Radio 1.

"But I think the chance of him replacing Latifi is very small. Latifi brings a lot of money with him, but of course it's also about performance. If performance doesn't materialize, it could be that Williams will end up with de Vries. For now, though, I think the chance is very small," van der Garde added.