Speaking on Sunday evening after winning the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton said there was "no guarantee" he'd stay in Formula One next year.
Naturally, his comments generated a huge amount of interest and speculation, raising questions that had previously seemed fairly well answered.
Prior to Sunday night, there had been an assumption within F1 that it was simply a matter of time until the six-time world champion (soon to be seven-time) signed a new deal with Mercedes. Questions over his next contract have been fired at Hamilton all year, but while he has never expressed 100 percent commitment, he has never left himself as much wiggle room as he did on Sunday evening.