After months of speculation since he announced his departure from McLaren at the end of 2013, we now have official confirmation that Sergio Perez will move to Force India for next season.
He will partner the highly-rated Nico Hulkenberg at the midfield team, as they look to take advantage of the dramatic regulation changes and move up the grid next year.
Force India confirmed that they have signed the 23-year-old on a "multi-year deal" at a media event in London on Thursday (12th December), nine days after confirming that Hulkenberg will return to the team after a year at rivals Sauber.
The news has left Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil seeking a drive elsewhere, with the latter being linked to one of the two seats at Sauber. Di Resta confirmed that talks have taken place with the Swiss team, but it looks likely that he will be forced out of Formula 1.
Perez made his F1 debut for Sauber in 2011 before scoring three podium finishes for the team in the following season. He moved to McLaren for 2013 but announced shortly before his 'home' race in Austin, Texas, that he would be leaving the team after just one season.
Team principal Vijay Mallya said: "It’s a pleasure to welcome Sergio to the team. He brings a healthy mix of youth and experience, and I’ve been very impressed with his recent performances. He already has several podium finishes to his name and being chosen by McLaren last year was a clear indication that he is a driver to watch for the future.
"We also recognise Sergio’s incredible talent and we are proud to have him in our team. He clearly has great speed and plenty of fire in his belly. Our job is to make sure he settles in quickly by creating the right atmosphere so that he can realise his potential. By pairing Sergio alongside Nico, we enter the new season with an extremely competitive line-up, which will go toward helping us achieve our goals for the new season."
Sergio Perez said: "It’s great to announce my new team as Sahara Force India. Coming here was always my first choice and I’m really happy everything has now been confirmed. I want to say thank you to Vijay and the whole team for giving me the opportunity.
"This is a young team with a lot of determination and they’ve produced competitive cars for the last few years. It’s all change for next season with the new regulations, but I already have a good feeling about 2014. My plan now is to visit the factory and get to know everyone in the team."
There are now just five vacant seats left on the 2014 grid. Sauber and Caterham both have two vacant seats and Marussia have yet to announce Jules Bianchi's team-mate.
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| (c) Sahara Force India F1 Team |
Force India confirmed that they have signed the 23-year-old on a "multi-year deal" at a media event in London on Thursday (12th December), nine days after confirming that Hulkenberg will return to the team after a year at rivals Sauber.
The news has left Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil seeking a drive elsewhere, with the latter being linked to one of the two seats at Sauber. Di Resta confirmed that talks have taken place with the Swiss team, but it looks likely that he will be forced out of Formula 1.
Perez made his F1 debut for Sauber in 2011 before scoring three podium finishes for the team in the following season. He moved to McLaren for 2013 but announced shortly before his 'home' race in Austin, Texas, that he would be leaving the team after just one season.
Team principal Vijay Mallya said: "It’s a pleasure to welcome Sergio to the team. He brings a healthy mix of youth and experience, and I’ve been very impressed with his recent performances. He already has several podium finishes to his name and being chosen by McLaren last year was a clear indication that he is a driver to watch for the future.
"We also recognise Sergio’s incredible talent and we are proud to have him in our team. He clearly has great speed and plenty of fire in his belly. Our job is to make sure he settles in quickly by creating the right atmosphere so that he can realise his potential. By pairing Sergio alongside Nico, we enter the new season with an extremely competitive line-up, which will go toward helping us achieve our goals for the new season."
Sergio Perez said: "It’s great to announce my new team as Sahara Force India. Coming here was always my first choice and I’m really happy everything has now been confirmed. I want to say thank you to Vijay and the whole team for giving me the opportunity.
"This is a young team with a lot of determination and they’ve produced competitive cars for the last few years. It’s all change for next season with the new regulations, but I already have a good feeling about 2014. My plan now is to visit the factory and get to know everyone in the team."
There are now just five vacant seats left on the 2014 grid. Sauber and Caterham both have two vacant seats and Marussia have yet to announce Jules Bianchi's team-mate.
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