Hülkenberg at Force India in 2013: « It is not yet confirmed »
Announced for several weeks as one of the potential replacements for Felipe Massa at Ferrari, Nico Hülkenberg is also in the running for a seat at Sauber, as according to his manager, the German is not sure of staying with Force India next season.
Now that the transfer period has officially opened following Lewis Hamilton’s departure to Mercedes and his replacement by Sergio Pérez at McLaren, Nico Hülkenberg appears to be one of the most sought-after drivers at the moment.
Thus, although Vijay Mallya recently expressed the desire to retain his two current drivers, notably stating in *Auto Bild Motorsport* that Nico Hülkenberg and Paul di Resta were under contract for 2013, Timo Gans, the German’s manager, is less assertive with *Sport1*: « There is a pretty good chance that Nico will stay with Force India [but] it is not yet certain. We are not in a position to announce anything. »
According to Gans, there would be no deadline for Nico Hülkenberg, who will likely have time to consider potential offers coming, notably, from Maranello. After Sergio Pérez decided to leave for McLaren, the German and Paul di Resta are among the last contenders for a seat at Ferrari to replace Felipe Massa.
Indeed, even though the trend is towards extending the Pauliste for another season, Luca di Montezemolo recently stated that he would like to take a few more days before making his decision. According to BBC Sport, while the men from Maranello, led by Fernando Alonso, would like to retain Felipe Massa’s services, the team’s management is waiting to see if he can confirm his recent good performances in Japan and South Korea.
But according to the Swiss newspaper Blick, Nico Hülkenberg could also end up at Sauber, replacing Sergio Pérez, even though the Swiss team wouldn’t say no to Michael Schumacher.
