The Sahara Force India Formula One Team has confirmed that Paul Di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg will form its line-up for the 2012 season. This means that the star of the team’s 2011 World Championship challenge, Adrian Sutil,has been left in the lurch. The team did not name a reserve driver.
“Our new line-up means we say goodbye to Adrian Sutil, who has been with the team since we entered the sport,” said Vijay Mallya. “He has been an integral part of our success over the past four seasons and we wish him well for the future.”
Some recompense. Sutil will now beat a path to the door at Williams, where he will probably be greeted with open arms.
“I’m really looking forward to my second season of Formula One and continuing to grow and develop with Sahara Force India,” said di Resta. “I’ve said all along that I love being part of this team: they are ambitious, hungry for success and we work well together. I’m really excited about 2012 and there is a real sense of belief that we can continue to push the top teams and take another step forward.”
Hulkenberg is believed to have signed a contract in 2010 that would see him as a reserve in 2011 and then a racer driver in 2012. At the time it seemed that Sutil’s time in F1 was coming to an end, but his performances this year have been impressive. He finished ninth in the World Championship with 42 points, while rookie Di Resta scored 27.
“I’m obviously delighted to be staying with Sahara Force India and to be given the chance to race next year,” said Hulkenberg. “It wasn’t easy to watch from the sidelines this season, but I did my best to help the team and show what I was capable of.”
Sutil will face competition for the Williams drive from Vitaly Petrov, Bruno Senna, Rubens Barrichello, Sebastien Buemi and others. It would be a crime if he does not get a fulltime ride in 2012, and while he might get a job as a reserve driver with a top team, it is not likely that he will do much testing as he is not famous for his engineering feedback.
Mallya can now go back to trying unravel an even bigger mess with his Kingfisher Airlines operation in India. It is now clear that the Indian government does not want the embarrassment of a bankruptcy and is helping out easing ownership regulations, unfreezing frozen bank accounts and nudging banks to loan more money. Whether or not Mallya survives at the helm is quite another matter but it seems like the airline will survive.
Absurd though it may be, at a time when staff are being laid off and services slashed through lack of money, Kingfisher has just announced that it is to become the name sponsor of the club cricket championship in England and Wales and that the teams will fight it out for the Kingfisher Beer Cup. Presumably Mallya found a mattress which he had forgotten about and found some money under it, as his creditors have shown little willingness to give him any more cash in recent weeks, the airline suffering the humiliation of having to pay cash for its fuel. I am hearing that Kingfisher’s chief executive Sanjay Aggarwal has quit and that the news will be announced tomorrow.
joeblogsf1 
A bit tough on Sutil, but he’s been around for five long seasons.
Great news for Hulkenberg, he’s getting what was the fifth best car at the end of last season.
Joe,
What are your thoughts on Di Resta? You were rather sceptical at the beginning of the year, but it seems to me that he has performed rather well for a rookie.
Jonathan
I think he has been exceptional.
And lets not forget the small thing that Di Resta is Scottish along with a certain Whisky company running down the side of the car.
A promising driver (who I also think has ben exceptional) that makes a sponsor happy cannot be ignored.
In-house sponsor – one of many ways VJ’s has of covering himself.
Getting sponsorship money out of India is difficult due to their financial regulations. W&M are a UBG company and are being used mainly for that purpose.
Gutted for Sutil hope he gets a ride!
I don’t really understand this sympathy for Sutil. He’s not been performing that well, certainly no better than a dozen or so other drivers would have dine in the same position he was in last year.
He also seems to have a somewhat dubious personality.
I would be glad to see the back of him.
if being a rounded human being was a qualification for being an F1 driver, there would be more than a few holes on the F1 grid. Sutil is incredibly quick. He just does not know why he is quick.
“He also seems to have a somewhat dubious personality.”
Based on?
I never cared much for him and believe his time at Force India had passed – been there four years, never assumed a leadership position (from my limited perspective) and seemed to lose steam until DiResta showed up. However when he did get his act together this season he showed he belong. Maybe this will be a wake up call for him. So I wouldn’t mind seeing him get a decent ride. Would prefer Jaime A. in a Williams though
Yes, why is he of dubious personality? I’ve never seen him as anything other than a decent bloke. If we are talking about famous altercations, then we all know very very little about that and the circumstances.
Joe
In order of talent which way would you list:Vitaly Petrov, Bruno Senna, Rubens Barrichello, Sebastien Buemi, Jaime Alguasuari
Have not has time to think about
Phil R
My take on this is that all drivers you mentioned are just average.
And its a bit sad for Vitaly and Bruno.
But realistic only karting guys will prosper and Bruno is no Ayrton.
The only one who is above this is Jaime but it will be tough to proof it
as they only option for 2012 is HRT in worst case
I think people are a bit negative towards di Resta because he’s such a restrained personality. If he was naming his cars after girls and doing funny accents during interviews AND delivering on the track people would think he’s the second coming. Hope he stays as he is though.
Another small fact was he was comprehensively beaten by a team-mate who again is not pundit(and hence fan) favorite.
But then that fact is trivial when one has right passport in the pocket. How can one be less than exceptional if one has Brit passport. Anything that you lack in content can be compensated by the Pundits from Isles and all coverage they will give you and accolades that will be thrown your way.
I worry about people who think that nationality even matters.
If you just look at the headlines Sutil did better. However if you look at the fact that he was settled in the team and was used to working with them while di Resta had not raced a single seater in 5 years, didn’t know most of the tracks, didn’t know how an F1 car changed over a race distance and at the last few races of the season when the cars were on different strategies he always seemed to be put on the wrong one. Look at all that and you have to ask how much better than him was Sutil likely to be in 2012? If the team built a car for 2012 that was difficult to set up would Sutil look so good?
You also have to remember the last time di Resta did a full season in a single seater he won the Euro F3 championship. His equally experienced team mate then was Vettel. What has Sutil ever done that compares to that.
I can see no reason the team would have chosen Sutil over di Resta or Hulkenberg. Both will be big stars in the near future. Sutil despite the hype has never looked anything special.
To suggest that he was comprehensively beaten by Sutil is pretty selective. It took Sutil half a season to regularly outquality di Resta (who, remember, was in his first season). Had Sutil outshone di Resta all season, I’d agree that he’d been hard done by, but that is simply not the case. He seemed to raise his game in the latter part of the season (contracts time), which is simply not good enough in modern day F1. There were also a few instances where di Resta suffered because of the team putting him on the non-optimum strategy (he was severely compromised in Abu Dhabi, for example) or where they simply cocked up (the Silverstone pitstop débacle). Yes, Sutil eventually finished 9th in the championship, but I think it was one of his most inconsistent seasons yet and the team had no option to go for di Resta and Hulkenberg.
Di Resta also joined the “Point scorer on debut” club – yes only in 10th but the cars are seeming more reliable these days…
Good news for Di Resta, would liked to have seen Sutil stay, but….
I just don´t unerstand the way Mallay conducts business at all. Does he crap money?
In such a scenario I fear that there may have some constipation of late.
This is great news for the Hulk and great news for us fans! The show down between two young guns in Force India and Toro Rosso. Kimi and Romain trying to rebuild there respective career. Perez will try to show he has what it takes for that Ferrari seat. That midfield is looking tastier then ever!
I think Di Resta deserves another shot this year as it’s hard in your first season, but now their is no real benchmark against him. A poor season by Hulkenburg and Di Resta will look great, which might not be the case. Strange decisions a plenty !
More proof the graph of progress for a driver must always be headed up. When you’re pretty good, but have leveled (thinking Sutil, Buemi, Alguersuari), you may soon be discarded for someone currently below you whose path is pointed upward, in the hopes of an eventual higher peak.
Ready to see Hulkenburg perform, find out if Brazil pole was a fluke or if he can make his way into the top tier!
Tough on Sutil, but he’s now been around with out actually achieving much for too long now. Flashes of brilliance, but nothing consistent. IMHO, Di Resta is the future, given the right equipment.
But then, I’d actually boot Hamilton for Di Resta.
That’s a bit knee-kerk after one particularly torrid season for LH isn’t it?
Boot Hamilton for di Resta? You must be crazy. Much as I like di Resta he is not as good as Hamilton. I am stunned anyone can even contemplate making such a comment.
How do you know di Resta is not as good as Hamilton?
How do you know he is?
Good news for Williams? Maybe.
Sutil paying the price for that stupid incident in a Chinese nightclub.
You can hear Eric Lux laughing.
that nightclub incident only dented his chance with 1 team only
he has himself to blame for not being impressive enough to secure a seat
Now I want to see Sutil at Williams. As you say it would be a crime if he was not offered a full-time ride. Maybe Barrichello will go to HRT or Caterham as he seems determined to chalk up that 20th season no matter what!
I do agree that Hulkenberg and di Resta will be a very strong line-up however, and a fascinating battle should develop between them with both having a year’s racing experience.
I dont think Di Resta has been exceptional. Schumacher, Alonso, Raikkonen, Hamilton and Vettel have been exceptional rookies over the years. Di Resta is ok just like Perez or DÁmbrosio, but not outstanding. Sutil had problems adapting to the new tires and could still beat DiResta in the point standings in the end. That means DiResta will need a few years to maybe just maybe be on a top 5 driver level and by then he will be almost 30 years old anyway.
He will have to beat Hulkenberg first and after that either Rosberg at Merc or Button at McLaren ?! Dont see that happening.
We will have to agree to disagree on that.
The ‘Bosses’ agree with you, they rated Di Resta 7, Sutil 8.
c’mon how can you say that Di Resta wasn’t awesome in 2011? He after all comes from the Isles, place that is the most influential in F1 in terms of Pundits, press, personnel, team factories and everything that is associated with F1.
If Bob Dylan was F1 fan he would just tweak his famous “God on our side” lyrics to reflect the importance of Isles and unfair advantage it gives every average to become exceptional and so on….
The country I come from
Is called the Midwest
I’s taught and brought up there
The laws to abide
And the land that I live in
Has God on its side.
No disrespect to Hamilton who is ridiculously talented, but of course he was an exceptional rookie – he debuted in the ’07 McLaren with thousands of miles of testing!! I think Di Resta was fantastic.
Love your humour at times. We all need matresses like that 🙂
Williams is now spoiled for choice, don’t you think?
-k-
“Presumably Mallya found a mattress which he had forgotten about and found some money under it”
Made me laugh. Happy for Hulkenberg – looking forward to see who comes out on top between him and Di Resta.
Joe – given your comments on Sutil not being famous for his engineering feedback, and not knowing why he is quick – why would Williams opt for him over Barry?
Because he is QUICK
how many times do you have to repeat yourself Joe?
This feedback thing is a puzzle – Force India haven’t been too shabby the last three or four years in spite. Sutil will fit right in at Williams on that score; RB achieved zip.
I think it’s a case of too many similarly talented drivers available. Sutil had been in the team for 5 years and they were bored of him. Need new energy. It would be a shame if Barrichello loses the Williams seat to Adrian.
Theres’ not really much to choose between Buemi, Alguersuari and Sutil. Barrichello is at least a mature proven quantity, something Williams really needs.
Joe, who do you fancy to replace Schumacher at Mercedes now – I thought Hulkenberg was in the frame at one point, as well as Di Resta. Maybe next the performance of either next year will be the key…
can’t understand why people keep calling Di Resta a rookie!
Because he is.
Because it was his first year in F1.
DTM is high class racing, but Sébastien Bourdais reminded everyone that trophies elsewhere don’t always mean success in F1.
Loving the inline responses Joe, makes it much easier to get the value out of your response to comments, thanks!
Agree, it makes it much easier
Agree, big sigh of relief.
Sutil deserves a ride but I agree with the Force India decision. Sutil has been making rather small steps since he’s been in F1 while Di Resta and Hulkenberg already made some big steps in their respective rookie years (it remains to be seen if they can copy that in their second year). Although Sutil performed rather well this year in previous years his performances weren’t exceptional. A drive at Williams or a role as reserve driver might fit him well.
A bit rough on Sutil in light of some good drives in the latter part of this season but when all’s said and done, he’s never been so outstanding as to make his position indispensable. Assuming he does end up at Williams, even if it’s a step back for him in terms of competitiveness, it might be the new environment and challenge he needs. Having said that, of course Williams would be nuts to drop Rubens… maybe my refrain should now shift to Lotu… Caterham?
Jefe,
Take a look at this link, and decide if you think Eric Lux is the most honest looking guy you’ve ever see:
I can imagine him starting a fight quite easily! Meanwhile, Sutil has been in F1 for 5 years and never before had a problem.
so if Mr Eric Lux is not “most honest looking guy”, what has he got to do with Sutil not getting a seat?
as far as I remember, his company only operate 1 F1 team, and his team is not that much popular to influence other teams not to take Sutil
Sutil has only himself to blame, for being in F1 (and in the same team) for consecutive 5 seasons without making any real impact
There really isn’t any rocket science to this: “Stuff” happens when alcohol gets involved.
@Paul P : I’m not sure how you can define ‘honest’ from a capital seeking video.
However, I can see an implied plea for ‘razors’. ‘Please send some’, ‘Single blade will do, we don’t have any money left to buy them for ourselves’.
Ive said it once and ill say it again. Rid of Maldonado, Barichello and Sutil @ Williams Senna to Caterham with Buemi as reserve Alguesuari to HRT Petrov tesing @ Virgin and D’ambrosio testing @ Lotus and will someone please get rid of Trulli. Joe why dont people listen to me????
Nice to see the Hulk back in business! That guy has won in just about everything he’s ever driven in and certainly deserves to be driving full time. Should make for a nice little tug-o-war between him and Paul. Never would have guessed there would be Sutil, Petrov, Senna, Rubens, Jerome, Liuzzi, Buemi, and Jamie all competing for seats at Willy and HRT. I wonder who will win the final two spots?
Williams has to sign Sutil. Or at least very much ought to. I just don’t see anyone else making sense. That will make a solid lineup as I think more highly of Pastor than most.
Re. Force India, they better perform now as they have a pair of drivers considered to be budding stars. For some reason, though, I think next year may be a disappointment for them. That’s probably more subjective than objective thinking, though.
the problem with all aviation companies in India is that a govt operated airlines sells tickets at prices which result in operating losses. The fuel prices are very high when compared to other countries in the region or other developing economies. All airline companies have been downgraded including one from the govt. It’s a horrible business to be in i’m sure Mallya is finding a way to get out of it or reduce it to run on high tariff & high traffic routes only…
It seems strange that Hulkenberg was able to secure such a good contract at the end of 2010, having just been sacked by Williams. I had thought he was an outstanding prospect when he entered F1, but he clearly lost out to Barrichello and seemed lacking in confidence and fight. He did get that freak pole, but aside from that he beat RB in qualifying just 5 times out of 18 and ended up with 22 points to Rubens’ 47. Considering Rubens is over the hill, that was not a great record.
And yet he walked straight from that to a guaranteed race seat with Force India for 2012? That seems very odd. I would assume that the team would have got out of it if they could, as I don’t see any basis in his 2010 record for assuming that he will do better for the team in 2012 than Sutil would have done. I hope he proves me wrong, but I just don’t see the evidence for it.
Maybe Sutil woke up too late to the fact that he was under threat and should have given 100% sooner, but I still thought that beating both Mercedes on merit in the final race ought to have secured his position.
I must admit, a few years ago I had Sutil pegged as Hamilton’s team mate, a job which went to Kovalainen at the time and then Button was suddenly available when the Finn left.
I don’t see Sutil being able to climb back up the ladder now though, it’s busy at the top and his trajectory seems to have stalled.
Having said that, some said that of Button a few years back.
I’ll be crossing my fingers for a good Williams-Renault for next year to pitch Sutil against his old team and the Lotuses.
Joe,
do you have any indication that the delay in this announcement was due to some wrangling behind the scenes (i.e. contract recognition board)?
Could it be that FI tried to keep Sutil after his late season improvement, but ultimately concluded that the other 2 contracts were bullet-proof. And so in the end they had no choice rather than stick with their initial decision?
Or is this scenario too far-fetched? Thanks!
This was Joes punt a few days ago:
“Time will tell. Meanwhile we are waiting for Force India to announce that Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta will stay on next year, thus pushing out Nico Hulkenberg. This would be tough on the German, but he has the possibility if his contract has not been respected to leave Force India and move to Williams, which is believed to be waiting on Sutil”
Which in hindsight seems no more than a hedging of one’s bets?
Personally PDR is over rated esp in UK and unable to beat what is considered a mere reasonable journeyman. (AS would be better if he spent less time getting rat arsed and more time concentrating on the driving. He has a strong reputation for liking his drink not just the infamous glassing incident has drink been a major factor in his out of work behaviour apparently). PDR on the other hand was getting a reputation of being their new Ralf Schumacher with all front wings he was getting through but to be fair he did calm down towards the end of the season although to my mind, his season mirrored Luizzi’s before him. Started off well but petered out .Meh
My own choice would have been to drop PDR , keep AS and NH for next year then move AS out if -as expected- NH easily out performed him. I now greatly look forward to seeing how PDR measures up against NH who has a lot to prove but is well respected within the team already. This is the make or break year for PDR as there are far too many better drivers out there (with cash available)
You should try this job one day. Yes, we all make mistakes occasionally. Perhaps you should look at the ones I got right.
And merry Christmas to you to.
I am a firm admirer of you and remain a committed reader but I also read Pitpass, don’t consider VJ the devil incarnate or feel Luizzi is anything other than a below average F1 driver.
If it makes you feel happier our boiler has just died a death today which means we shall be without hot water and heat quite probably till after Christmas 🙂
joyeux noel and keep warm!
Don’t agree with you about NoPitpass, VJ or Liuzzi, but you get my support on the boiler front. Mine blew up last week, so I feel your pain. The best solution is to fly to California (he writes from the departure lounge).
With all the telemetry, it seems to me that just about any driver could be told why and where he/she is quick (or slow). So the notion of being quick and not knowing why would seem to be one of just being too damned poor at listening to be of much good to anyone wanting to develop a car. Could Williams have a test among the possible candidates at Jerez, will that be too late, or will money talk more than performance? Also, if I understand correctly, the only other seat that may be up for grabs at this point is Liuzi’s seat at HRT. Or is that seat reserved for a young Red Bull backed driver?
Interesting that both drivers chosen were significantly outpointed by teammates during their rookie years. Neither Di Resta or Hulkenberg seem strong the personality department either, but they’re not being paid for that, are they?
I disagree. They just need time. New drivers often do.
I’d actually be worried if a rookie arrived with a fully fledged personality. You rather hope and presume that their first year is going to be all absorbing. However di Resta seems to have mental cycles to spare, which is more than a little promising. (It’s that facility which levels him up above the rest, IMO. Check out any of his post race interviews, very detailed, and i think toned down a bit, later in season.) Either way he’s a huge interest for me for the coming year.
Ferrari interested in Sutil as replacement for Massa.
According to respected German magazine Auto Motor und Sport, there are rumours in the Formula 1 paddock suggesting that Ferrari is interested in hiring Sutil to replace the struggling Felipe Massa. Massa endured one of his worst seasons ever in 2011 and it is widely known that next year is his last chance to prove himself if he is to remain with Ferrari in the future. Massa did not get a single podium in 2011, becoming the first regular Ferrari driver since Ivan Capelli in 1992 to fail to make it into the top three during a season.
T’is the season for decent drivers being either dumped out or simply overlooked.
How about this. 20 rounds (in theory) in 2011. Drivers championship is decided on the basis of, say, 16. That is, 8 times a season there is a mandated slot for each team to run someone other than the two main drivers, but the constructors championship is still run over the full 20, so there’s an incentive for your third drivers to contribute? Hmm?
Nah, didn’t think so…
Hope Sutil gets the Williams drive, his drive in Brazil showed that when he is on form he can get the job done. If he could find the consistency and cut out the wildness he has a big upside.
It may sound really weird but I think Ferrari should say goodbye to Massa & try Sutil atleast for one season.what do you think joe
Yes, that is weird.
BTW Joe, reports in India are speculating that the Sahara Group are lending Rs. 250cr to help with his airline problems. Point to consider is that the Sahara group recently sold its airlines to one of Mallya’s competitors – Jet. So all in all, it looks like decisions in FI will be influenced one way or the other by Sahara in future.
Sutil reminds me of Fisichella. A quality journeyman. Has some good speed, will usually bring the car home but won’t win the world title except under extraordinary circumstances.
Sorry but some people on here judge sutil before they look at his stats!! Im a huge Force India fan and Sutil has been excellent for us for a few years!! top points collector for two years in a row for force india!
You have to remember that force india got themselves together in spa 2009 where fisi got pole! but people forget what sutil did before hand unlucky in china!! where he was going to get 3rd or 4th, monaco, and then Germany where he drove fantastically but got hit by Kimi again!! after Spa he qualified 3rd in Monzo and Brazil!!! that season collecting points and drving fantastically!!
2010 season he drove so well!!! getting majority of points and yet again in 2011!!! he is quick and im sad that he didn’t get the drive for next year!!
he got his drive with midlands by getting the fastest time in a test and monaco practice and got the first points for spyker!!!
williams are going to get a fantastic driver MUCH BETTER THAN DI RESITA!!! who i dont rate as much as alot of people here!! he knows the car and the tracks as he drove most of them in 2010 including long runs when he was the test driver!!!
for me it should of been the HULK and SUTIL….
This years results notwithstanding, this deal seems to have been done a long time ago judging by the fact they are honouring a contract with Hulkenburg over an experienced and proven driver. Either that, or they are desperately short of cash and can save cash by sacking Sutil.