Vergne thinks Toro Rosso F1 team would be right to retain him
Jean-Eric Vergne believes staying on at Toro Rosso for 2015 would be in the best interests of both Red Bull and his current Formula 1 team
Red Bull's decision to replace Ferrari-bound Sebastian Vettel with Daniil Kvyat for next season has created a vacancy alongside F1 rookie Max Verstappen at its junior team Toro Rosso for next season.
Vergne has already twice been overlooked for promotion to Red Bull, and had been considering alternative options after originally losing his STR seat to teenager Verstappen.
But the Frenchman now hopes to remain an STR driver in 2015 and thinks Red Bull would be best served retaining him to nurture Verstappen's raw talent.
"There are a lot of benefits [to keeping me]," Vergne said.
"They [Red Bull] see Max as a great talent and I think he can learn from me like Dani did this year.
"I think it's a win-win for everybody.
"To be fair everything is pretty open for next year and I cannot say really what is going on, but all I can say is I wish to continue with this team and we will see what happens in the next few days and weeks."
According to Red Bull boss Christian Horner, Vergne is one of four drivers on Red Bull's roster in contention for the seat, alongside Formula Renault 3.5 champion Carlos Sainz Junior, runaway GP3 points leader Alex Lynn, and Vergne's fellow Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who finished runner-up to Sainz as an FR3.5 rookie this year.
Vergne also believes his F1 experience is worth keeping in order to help Toro Rosso improve further as a team.
"I think it [retaining me] is the best option for the team and myself," he added.
"We've built up Toro Rosso [together]. When I arrived they had a brand new team with a new technical director, a lot of new people, and the plan was in a few years to be really one of the top midfield teams.
"We're getting there, and I think it will be really important for all of us that we keep going.
"This year we lost so many points with the retirements I had.
"If next year I don't have the retirements and get a better car, we will be in a really strong position.
"I think we can be a really strong team next year if we keep going together."
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