Force India: The drivers are both contracted for next year

Force India are keen to retain their current driver line-up for 2017, with Nico Hulkenberg confirmed there is still a question mark over Sergio Perez's future with the team.

Deputy team principal Bob Fernley told media, “We are keen to keep both drivers, so if we can haul in Williams and take fourth place, there are only three manufacturer teams ahead of us. So you are going too sideways or backwards.

“The thing for us is to work hard and limit the choice. I think we have got to make that decision as difficult as it possibly can be,” Fernley explained with regards to the big Mexican business backing Perez brings to the Silverstone based team.

“It is a pretty straightforward process but it gets complicated,” admitted Fernley. “The drivers are both contracted for next year. Then you are talking the commercial side, because we have significant commercial arrangements with Checo [Perez]’s supporters and sponsors.”

“Those are separate decisions and separate discussions. But in essence the decision to keep the driver pairing was there.”

“So I would dearly hope we can keep all of his people on board. But that wasn’t the priority. The priority was to keep the driver pairing. It is purely commercial. It is nothing to do with anything else,” revealed Fernley.