Daniel Ricciardo is looking to extend his stay at Toro Rosso, hoping his fight for the final point in Japan helped his cause.
The Australian claimed tenth place at the Japanese GP last Sunday, beating seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher to the final point.
But as to whether that result will be enough to secure his seat remains to be seen.
"I never want to count my chickens, but I definitely believe if I wasn't looking good before Japan, [that drive] definitely helps," he told Autosport.
"I am positive I can give another season a crack here, and hopefully with [technical director] James Key's development on next year's car, we can do what Sauber has done this year."
The 23-year-old spoke glowingly of the impact Key, who was named as Toro Rosso's new technical director in September, has already had on the tema.
"At circuit he has given a fresh approach. He is very ambitious, that is the right word," Ricciardo said.
"Sometimes the team is probably too realistic, so it is nice to have someone who is quite ambitious and wants a bit more. That is good.
"It is a bit of a different approach. From Friday, we don't really look at the big picture, and we don't look to Saturday, we just take it session by session and that has really showed from Spa.
"From Friday to Sunday, we kept getting better. I am not sure what it is, but maybe it is a bit of experience and a bit of gelling with the team after 15 races."
