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Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley has revealed that the team are interested in signing Felipe Nasr.
The Sauber driver has denied that he has been in talks with the Silverstone-based team, but they have the Brazilian on their shortlist
"Felipe Nasr is on the list," Fernley said. "Vijay, myself, Andrew Green and Otmar Szafnauer will analyse the names one by one."
"We will all give our opinion about who we think is the best package. They should be fast, experienced and help the group to grow," he explained.
"We are seeking a consensus solution, which doesn't always happen in the first meeting. Personally, I don't think we will decide the other driver straight away."
Globo said Fernley, team boss Vijay Mallya and other key figures in the Force India team will sit down to discuss the 2017 selection this week.
Technical boss Green also acknowledged that they are interested in Nasr, but he also sais they were keeping their eye on "everyone who is out of contract".
"We are fourth in the constructors' championship with one of the smallest budgets in F1," he boasted.
Also linked with a move to Force India is current Renault driver Jolyon Palmer.
"He'd love to continue with Renault, he's put a lot into it this year, he's very bullish and enthusiastic about it," Palmer's father Jonathan told The Sun newspaper.
"But if that doesn't happen, then of course there's no doubt Force India is a great team. So that's certainly something that we are pursuing," he admitted.
Kevin Magnussen, Esteban Gutierrez, and Marcus Ericsson are also thought to be on Force India's shortlist but Mercedes junior Pascal Wehrlein is understood to not be rated highly by Force India engineers, seemingly ruling him out.
GP2 points leader Antonio Giovinazzi is thought to have an outside chance at a seat, but Force India's Green played down the likelihood of any rookie being signed for 2017.
"I prefer drivers with some experience in F1, especially with the new regulations for 2017," he said.
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C. Sainz jr
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Replies (3)
Login to replyHEINZ
Posts: 61
I cant really understand how they could be considering Ocon and not Wehrlein. How come he is good enough to test the Mercedes car but not Force India's?
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
I think Wehrlein is a good option. However, I believe he did try one of their cars during a practice last year (if Im not mistaken?), so maybe they found that he wasnt the kind of driver they wanted or something. Or maybe he doesnt come with enough cash.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Nasr is probably one of the less deserving of a place there, he comes with lots of cash and talk, but I havent seen him do better than Ericsson this year, and Ericsson is pretty average, even if he did a great job both in the U.S and Mexico. KMag, Ocon and Wehrlein are better options.