Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said Friday he did not expect Donald Trump to run for president as a third party candidate if he fails to win the Republican nomination.

Speaking to Greta Van Susteren on Fox News, Priebus said he expected a Republican to beat Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee.

"I think he knows that ... if Hillary Clinton is going to get beat, there's only one party that's going to beat her: It's the Republican Party," Priebus said of Trump.

The business mogul has come under fire in recent weeks for his controversial comments about immigration and Arizona Sen. John McCain's war record.

Although Trump threatened to run as a third party candidate if he sensed he was being treated unfairly by GOP leadership, Priebus did not seem concerned about the possibility.

Trump, who has surged to the top of the Republican primary field despite his comments, would undoubtedly siphon votes away from the GOP nominee and lend Clinton an advantage if he ran on an independent ticket.