One week prior to the , Toro Rosso announced the signing of then 16-year-old Max Verstappen to replace Vergne at the conclusion of the 2014 season to be partnered with Kvyat – meaning that Vergne would be without a seat with the team. In Belgium, Kvyat qualified 11th and Vergne qualified 12th, with Kvyat collecting 2 points after finishing 9th, while Vergne just missed out on the final points position, in 11th. At the team's home race in Italy, Kvyat once again outqualified Vergne, starting 11th to Vergne's 13th. Both drivers finished the race in the same position in which they started. At the , Kvyat lined up 10th while Vergne was 12th. Despite receiving a 5-second penalty for exceeding track limits, Vergne finished the race in 6th place, Kvyat finished in 14th place. At the , Vergne outqualified Kvyat as they started 11th and 13th respectively, and Vergne scored more points with a 9th-place finish, while Kvyat was just outside the points in 11th. Just before this race, Red Bull announced that Sebastian Vettel would leave their team at the conclusion of the season, and that Kvyat would be promoted to the senior team – giving Vergne a renewed chance to fight for his seat with Toro Rosso for the remainder of the season. Among the candidates being considered for the second seat were Vergne, as well as Red Bull Junior Team drivers Carlos Sainz Jr. and Pierre Gasly – who finished first and second in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series – and Alex Lynn, the GP3 Series champion.