Fernando Alonso's managers say it is possible the Spaniard will return to formula one in 2020.
Disenchanted with the category, Abu Dhabi is the 37-year-old's last grand prix for now, as Alonso will focus on the Indy 500, Le Mans and some other "iconic" races in 2019.
"Maybe next year by April or May I will be on the sofa and desperate to find a way to come back. But it's not the initial idea," he said on Thursday.
Alonso's manager Luis Garcia Abad agrees that the double world champion is not "retiring".
"In terms of Fernando's relationship with formula one, it's 'see you later' rather than goodbye," he is quoted by Marca.
"It's the end of something but you can never say never," Garcia Abad added.
Also commenting on Alonso's 'open door' approach to his F1 exit is Flavio Briatore, who still oversees the management of the McLaren driver's career.
"He could go back in the future," the former Renault boss told El Mundo newspaper.
"Nobody has said that this is a goodbye. Provided he has a car with guarantees, he can return and be competitive," Briatore said.
"What is clear is that he could not continue like this, arriving at races without a chance. It is nonsense," he charged.
The flamboyant Italian said that for 2019 at least, F1 is losing a great.
"Some of the others are children who if they didn't wear the team's overalls in the paddock, nobody would know who they are," said Briatore.
"Formula one without Fernando is like football without Cristiano Ronaldo."
