Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest news regarding Formula 1 on Tuesday, November 10.

Tuesday morning's Formula 1 news roundup:

Verstappen right to be 'realistic' about 2021 chances

Robert Doornbos thinks Max Verstappen is right to suspect that he will also not win the 2021 title with Red Bull.

Dutchman Verstappen has been quoted this week as doubting that the covid-minded rules for next season will give Red Bull-Honda the improvement it needs to take on Mercedes.

"Max is just being realistic about things," Doornbos, a fellow Dutchman who raced for Red Bull in 2006, told Ziggo Sport.

"You have to have a goal in mind and for Red Bull that is to be champion. The problem is that there are very few ways to improve the car for next year.

"Apart from a few jokers that teams can use to modify the car, nothing much should happen," he added.

Some may regard Verstappen's opinion about 2021 as defeatism, but Doornbos thinks a realistic approach is actually more helpful.

"It makes no sense to focus on the championship if you know it is not going to work," he said. "After all, Red Bull as a team is built around him.

"So he should enjoy the moment and wait for the moment when the car is good enough."

Doornbos doubts that Verstappen, who has a contract until the end of 2023, is shaping up for an attempt to switch to Mercedes.

"I don't think he wants to do that," he said. "The structure of a team also changes over time so if Max did decide to make the switch, it doesn't mean they will be as good as they are now.

"But at Red Bull, he has the entire team around him and they have been champion four times in a row previously, so it definitely is possible."

Finally, Doornbos predicts that Red Bull will at least get a power boost next year to mark Honda's final year in Formula 1.

"I think they would like to leave with a bang," he said. "Max will have to hope for that, because everything is fine with the chassis."

Turkey hoping to host 23rd race in 2021

Formula 1 is still not ready to confirm the accuracy of a leaked version of next year's race calendar.

Recent reports suggested the 2021 schedule will have an unprecedented 23 grands prix, and now media sources have published a version of it - starting in Australia on March 21 and ending in early December in Abu Dhabi.

The calendar does have 23 race dates, but political problems in Vietnam mean the scheduled April 25 event will likely now be replaced by Imola, Istanbul or Portimao.

Toto Wolff hopes that F1 has learned from 2020, when some more traditional circuits stepped in amid the corona crisis to give the sport an alternative calendar.

"I do not agree with this tendency towards circuits that look like large supermarket parking lots," said the Mercedes boss. "We need circuits on which mistakes are really punished."

Istanbul Park, to host this weekend's Turkish GP on a challenging venue, is clearly hoping to secure that vacant slot in 2021.

"I am trying to retain it," promoter Vural Ak confirmed to the Anadolu news agency.

"We are in talks to hold the Turkish GP next year as well. It will likely be finalised very soon. My goal is to make this race a regular feature," he added.

Barcelona, meanwhile, has a May 9 race scheduled despite not yet signing a contract with Liberty Media, while Interlagos is still on the 2021 calendar even though Rio de Janeiro has launched a rival bid.

Formula 1, though, is not ready to confirm the leaked information.

"We will not comment on the provisional calendar until it is made public and confirmed," a spokesman said.

More news from Formula 1:

Binotto confirms plan to skip races in 2020, 2021
Mattia Binotto has confirmed reports that he will be absent this weekend in Istanbul. Read more.

Hamilton politics 'dangerous' for F1 - Schumacher
Political activism is "dangerous" in Formula 1, former driver Ralf Schumacher has warned. Read more.

Vietnamese GP dropped from 2021 Formula One calendar
Vietnam was due to host its first grand prix on the streets of its capital Hanoi in April. Read more.

Rookie lineup a 'mammoth task' for Haas - Schumacher
Gunther Steiner has admitted that running an all-rookie driver lineup next year is "a risk". Read more.