Force India not in a hurry to find a replacement for Hülkenberg

With Nico Hülkenberg’s departure to Sauber in 2013, the Force India team has a free seat for the next season. Jules Bianchi looks like the favorite to support Paul di Resta, the Frenchman being the third driver of the team just as Di Resta and Hülkenberg were before him. Moreover, with the second place in the Formula Renault 3.5 championship, F1 seems like the logical next step in the career of the driver from the Nice region.

But other drivers are also candidates for the second seat with the Indian team. This is the case for Sébastien Buemi, about whom Helmut Marko recently stated that he was in discussions with Vijay Mallya’s team and that if a primary position became available, Red Bull would not stand in the way. The names of Jaime Alguersuari, Kamui Kobayashi, Charles Pic, or even Adrian Sutil have also been mentioned. In other words, there’s quite a crowd jostling for the spot at the team based near Silverstone.

But it seems that all these drivers will have to be patient before possibly being officially confirmed at Force India for 2013. Vijay Mallya has no intention of announcing his lineup before the end of the current championship: « We have traditionally waited until the end of the season to confirm our drivers, and I expect us to stick to this schedule. With the current situation in the transfer market, there is no rush to make an announcement. We have a list, and we will take our time to ensure we have the fastest drivers in our car next season. »

What is certain is that Paul di Resta will be part of the lineup again next season, for the third consecutive year.