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Alguersuari is apparently off to DTM for BMW for 2013 so we can pretty much rule him out. Looks like he jumped the gun big time on his 'certain seat'.

As for FI, well if they were sure they wanted Di Resta and Mr Average in Sutil then you'd say they'd have signed by now. One feels they are negotiating with Senna about money perhaps. If that falls through then Sutil will get the ride because no one else is available apart from Bianchi and Ferrari will decide where he goes next year.

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Just read that myself apparently signed a contract on Thursday for 2013 bmw dtm. I guess then there were 4 although most seem to discount buemi straight away so 3.

To answer the thread title, I think its because they are more thoughtful about their lineup. Their lineup in recent years hasn't at all disappointed in fact has brought good talent some exposure and allowed them to move up. If I remember correctly there was that guy who went to ferrari a few years back and this year the hulk. They are rather good at balancing talent and Inexperienced/semi-pay drivers and take some time to think about it. I personally want to see Di Resta and Bianchi, Di Resta only because Hulk left : (.

It seems that the contenders are Sutil & Bianchi more than any one else. The delay in the decision would help one think that they are analysing all of the factors before making their mind up.

Maybe they would keep Bianchi as a 3rd driver for 1 more year & then in 2014, when hey were to switch to Ferrari engines (as per the gossip), take him into the 2nd driver's seat. It was always a thing to note that whenever Mr Mallya was asked about the line up of 2013, he only took 1 person's name as a possibility & that was of Sutil. he did mention that they have other options but he never took the names.

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yes but in fairness most of the time was because sutil was seen hovering round the paddock so he was asked is he an option/ contender. Sutil is obviously an option an experienced driver who knows the team, i just cant help but think they would have announced him by now if it was him his demands cant be that high because no other team want him.

Lets hope they do before the available drivers seek another form of motorsport in despair.

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A little rumor came out this morning, about Bruno Senna and Force India.
https://twitter.com/VGMFormulaComp/stat ... 5538310145

This seat is so talked about i have given up listening to rumors i am just waiting til they announce it now not even going to read the rumors because if all are true force India have no clue and at least 3-4 drivers are about to be announced....

The word in bold just about says it all. It's not from some one official or reliable.

If they were to take any one other than Sutil, it'll be probably Bianchi. Even Mallya had mentioned once, that he didn't find any one from the 2012 grid to be competitive enough to take the 2nd seat. Senna & Kobayashi would fit into this bracket.

Sutil, Bianchi & Alguesuari weren't on the 2012 grid so tey seem to be the strongest options.

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+1

Di Resta is nailed on. Kid needs a big year if he's serious about a move to a top team in the near future !

Would like to see Jaime back too. Thought it was harsh he lost his STR drive

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#10

apparently Jaime has already signed a bmw dtm contract for next year

Shame Jaime isn't going to be on the grid next year, I liked the guy and thought his exit was unfair (because F1 is such a fair sport inherently...) But it seems less likely he'll appear on an F1 grid again to be honest.

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At 1 point of time, he seemed so sure to be on the F1 grid in 2013.

Does it mean that the 2nd seat is either Sutil's or Bianchi's?

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Why does FI take its time to decide its line up?

Probably because they'll get accused of knee jerk reactions if they announce so soon!

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Multi 21 or Catch 22?!

It ain't hating just 'cause it's not love

If you think their delayed decision is a decision made too soon then what about other teams that have finalised their lineup much earlier?

The team may take its time but it's surely not pleasant for the hopeful drivers who wish to seek an alternate route of motorsport.

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Meh.

Their line up next year is going to be hugely uninspiring regardless of who they pick now Jaime is out of contention. Sutil is boring and average, Senna is boring and average and Bianchi has been pretty average in the lower formula in recent months too. Couple any one of them with Di Resta and you are looking at one of the dullest line ups on the grid and probably one of the worst outside Marussia/Caterham.

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Good you made your point clear. Hope you don't post any more relating to this.

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I kind of agree with Laura in regards to being less excited about the pairing now Alguersuari is out of the loop. I was hoping for him to get the seat. The only interest for me if Di Resta and Sutil are confirmed, is to see if Di Resta is able to defeat Sutil, as he'll have two years continuous experience compared to Sutil's numerous years and a year away from F1. Di Resta should come out on top or close to in that situation, but if Sutil beats him, then Di Resta really isn't up to much.

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Is Di Resta gets beaten by any of the three drivers in line for the second seat his F1 career will be in tatters. He can't afford for Sutil to beat him after a year out, he can't afford for Senna to beat him and if a rookie Bianchi beats him then well...

And UnlikeUDay, I'll post what I wnt about Force India thanks. I haven't broken any rules and until I do you can't complain about it at all.

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Agreed. Bianchi looks interesting but maybe only because he's unknown quantity in F1. Biachi & Jaime would have been great but too much of a risk, I guess.

Ofcourse You haven't Laura! Don't get my words in an aggressive manner.

Since I'm a Force India fan, couldn't take it that the lineup is going to be dull. Every one out here is loyal to a team or a driver, so am I. More than Alguesuari, I had thought Kobayashi had the best chance but don't know what's going on in Force India's mind.

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I'd like to see Senna get a drive there. I reckon its gonna be Paul and Jaime though.

Has it been confirmed?

I just pray it's not Sutil. Poor bloke is just so average and boring in my opinion. I'm hoping Senna gets another chance.

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not officially but has been widely reported and both have said they will confirm plans early Jan.

IMO Vitaly Petrov is underrated and worth a consideration by an upcoming middling team like Force India. He has talent and confidence but has not had a good opportunity to prove it.

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Vettel / Raikkonen / Button

This.

Give this guy a shot. I remember when he said he wanted to "kick ass". Guess what happened after that? He pretty much wiped the floor with Kova for the rest of the season. Everyone thought Kova was going to run over Petrov, but the guy has talent and a pure will to make his point. I've rated him ever since he was in GP2 because even though his record was not the best, the guy had a lot of aggresivess and is quick.

2010 he was with Kubica and he had his flashes. 2011 was good until development stopped and beat Heidfeld and Senna that year and 2012 he started off slow because remember at Monaco and Bahrain, he was about a second off the pace in qualifying to Kova. Yet he got comfortable and started to compete and beat Kova. Give this guy a decent shot with FI, but he'll need to change up that helmet a bit.lol

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well my Force India Picks would be.

Realistically.
#1 seat) Jaime Alguesuari, (he said he would return to F1 soon in recent interviews.)
#2 seat) Bruno Senna or Paul DiResta (Senna because of his money and linage. DiResta because he carry's Force India recently)

my dream pics.
#1 seat) DiResta (as stated before he has been doing very good with the team.)
#2 seat) Kobayashi (I am a HUGE kobayashi fan, and its sad to see him not have a ride in 2013 but he said he wanted to focus on feeders "F-Nippon, F-Renoit, ect. tell 2014.)

and I'm also a Senna fan, but I really think he was PUSHED into F1 seats way to quickly. I think he needed more time in the feeders to develop his skills. But thats just my opinion.

Just recently read that Hulkenberg visited the Sauber factory for a seat fitting. Preparations like these are made already in the off season which is usual. Force India not deciding on it's lineup could delay all these preparations.

It's better to get the job done when there is time.

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Of the available drivers, they should consider Kobayashi, Sutil, Petrov, Senna, Bianchi, in that order. Personally I'd seat share between Sutil and Kobayashi, Kobayashi doing the Asian and American races and Sutil doing the Middle East and European races which should hopefully get around any criminal record issues.

Petrov should stay at Caterham, he's building a reputation by beating 3 team mates in 2 years, if he beats Pic who is pretty highly rated he could land himself a Williams seat the year after with his Russian money. Caterham should also sign up Senna for his sponsor money. Bianchi can do whatever, he doesn't excite me at all.

If they don't want Kobayashi for whatever reason, and common knowledge seems to indicate they don't, Petrov & Sutil and Di Resta is a pretty reasonable lineup. I'd still go for Kobayashi over any of them though.

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Strange that Kobayashi decided to take a sabbatical instead of trying for a seat at Force India. Senna hasn't been consistent (nor has Maldonado but he has shown he has speed, unlike Senna) & Bianchi could be a risk but who knows how well he would perform, good or bad.

It's practical to take Sutil as of now but it all depends what the management is mainly after, skill or sponsor? Ofcourse, a sponsored driver can be skilled even but the confusion over the decision can be overwhelming.

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senna showed speed the problem was not in qualifying. Had been as competitive in his qualifying performances as his races he would have reached q3 more often than not. Remember he beat quite a dew off the f1 grid in gp2 in his rookie season and was within 2tenths off button in his Honda test, button went on that year to be wdc. I think numerous issues contributed to his lack of qualifying pace last season. But lets not forget he out qualified Alonso in his Renault debut mid season so he is nit as slow as people make him out to be.

His race performances have sadly been overshadowed by Maldonado's speed this season, so many might have a low profile of Senna. He is good but consistency is everything now in F1. One great example is Raikkonen.

The midfield is become so tight that both of the drivers have to be performing at their best, not just from the WDC point of view but even from the WCC point of view.

All what is sure that they had a long list of drivers wanting to drive for Force India next season & Bob Fernley mentioned that they have a short shortlist. Only if we knew who all are there & who aren't?

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Senna's contract with Williams ends tomorrow, so we will probably hear news about his plans next week.

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Fernando Alonso

well he has stated his ideal plan to stay in f1 in a competitive car, so if his contract has ended or not i doubt we will hear anything until force India and Caterham announce their remaining seats which will hopefully be end of this week start of next... Fingers crossed, because in fed up of waiting to know who will fill the seats, i think there is already a ridiculous amount of rookies pr people with just one season on the grid next year so i hope that the last two seats wont be taken up by another one.

Whoever they decide on, I hope is as good or is better than Di Resta.

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It's likely to be di Resta and Bianchi. Buemi has, apparently, been told that he's out of the running and Sutil is thought to be an outside bet.

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Sutil would be an outside bet under which circumstance? It's between these 3 people really. 1 will be left out. Either Bianchi or Sutil.

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Ideally , it should have been sutil and bianchi but since Di resta is already signed , hoping it's bianchi just to see what he brings to the table.

His qualifyng was somewhat woeful though

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Senna has shown very little to deserve a decent seat he would be my least favourite choice

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Maybe in Hulkenbergs case its a bit more important given his height most F1 drivers are built like jockeys

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