It has been confirmed that Esteban Ocon will become a Force India driver for 2017, replacing the departing Nico Hulkenberg.
Ocon has a superb track record in junior formula winning the European Formula 3 title in 2014 and GP3 title in 2015.
“I’m very excited to join Sahara Force India,” Ocon said. “I know the team quite well already because I was a test driver last year and I’m really looking forward to working with everybody at Silverstone once again.
“I’m still relatively new to Formula One, but spending half a season at Manor Racing has given me some valuable experience and I feel ready for this new opportunity with Sahara Force India.
“The next few months will be very busy as I do all I can to prepare for the challenge ahead of me.”
The 20-year old Frenchman replaced Rio Haryanto at the Manor Racing team earlier this season after the Indonesian driver ran into trouble with sponsors and lacked funding to keep his seat.
It had been rumoured for a long time that Manor teammate and fellow Mercedes junior Pascal Wehrlein would make the jump ahead of Ocon into the Force India seat, but ultimately the Frenchman won the battle to be moved up the grid.
Ocon added: “I want to say ‘thank you’ to everybody at Manor and especially to Mercedes-Benz for their support and belief in me. I can’t wait for 2017 and my first full season racing in Formula One.”
After his announcement at the team Ocon took to social media to tell the world of his excitement.
Twitter: A massive thank you to @ManorRacing for giving me the chance to start my @F1 career, let’s push for the last 2 rounds now
!
(@OconEsteban)
