Pascal Wehrlein negotiates with Force India for 2017 seat

F1 News – Pascal Wehrlein has revealed that he is in talks with Force India regarding a 2017 seat, after the departure of compatriot Nico Hülkenberg last week.
Force India confirmed on Friday that Hülkenberg would be leaving the team at the end of the year, with Renault swiftly announcing the German driver on a multi-year deal.

Hülkenberg’s exit leaves a seat available alongside Sergio Pérez at Force India, with Wehrlein thought to be among the candidates, through his Mercedes links and past connection with the team.

Wehrlein received three days of running with the Mercedes-powered Force India outfit in 2015, alongside his title-winning DTM campaign, before securing a race seat at Manor for this season.

“Indeed, there’s a seat at Force India, and of course we’re in talks with them,” Wehrlein confirmed to German media, while attending this weekend’s DTM finale at Hockenheim.

“We’ll see how it will unfold. At the moment, I’m focused on doing the best possible job for Manor. We want to end the season on a high.”

Wehrlein added that he had long expected a vacancy to arise at Force India.

“For me, it wasn’t a surprise that there would be an open seat at Force India,” he commented.

“First there were rumours about Sergio, just after he had signed it focused on Nico. There’s no smoke without a fire.”

Wehrlein occupies 18th in the standings, having scored a point at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Category: Formula One