One Force India race seat to be filled for 2017 with a number of options vying for the drive, but the top four being considered are Jolyon Palmer, Esteban Ocon and Pascal Wehrlein.
Who will replace departing Nico Hulkenberg and share a garage with Sergio Perez is one of the big stories of the Silly Season at the moment.
The truth of the matter is that Force India know Palmer, Ocon and Wehrlein who all at some point tested for the team, but the Silverstone based outfit are keen to evaluate the trio at the current point of their respective careers.
Deputy team principal Bob Fernley told F1i, “Yeah, we’ve been very fortunate that we’ve been able to look at Jolyon in the past, we’ve looked at Esteban Ocon in the past, Pascal Wehrlein in the past.”
“But there’s old data and we need our team to sit down and look at what the data is today. We can only do that when we’ve got away from the racing program and they’ve got a clean desk to work on.”
According to Fernley the team owned by beleaguered tycoon Vijay Mallya is also considering well funded Felipe Nasr as an option to partner Perez in the sister car.
But Fernley insists that they will not be rushing to make a decision, “We have to take that risk. At the end of the day you don’t rush into something that is a major decision like this.”
Importantly, the team are looking for a driver who can bring out the best in Perez and together they can develop a strong team ethic, similar to what the Mexican shared with Hulkenberg.
“We will look at making sure that we compliment him. The idea will be to make sure that we continue to push Checo, because obviously he’s the dominant force at the moment however we look at it and we need to continue that,” added Fernley.
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