Mercedes junior Esteban Ocon will race for Force India in Formula 1 from 2017, after signing a multi-year deal with the team.
The 20-year-old Frenchman won successive titles in European Formula 3 and GP3, before graduating to F1 mid-season with Manor Racing.
Ocon will partner Sergio Perez at Force India, replacing the out-going Nico Hulkenberg, who joins Renault.
“I’m very excited to join Sahara Force India,” he 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. It means lots of days at the factory, working on the simulator and building relationships with the engineers and everybody in the team.
Very very happy to join @ForceIndiaF1 for the 2017 @F1 Season! Had a great time with them in 2015 and I'm looking forward to have many more! pic.twitter.com/Nce6ngeKgR
— Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) November 10, 2016
“It’s something I’ve been working towards my whole life and I intend to grab this opportunity with both hands so that I can deliver the results the team expects from me.
“I can’t wait for 2017 and my first full season racing in Formula One.”
Force India team principal Vijay Mallya added: “It’s a pleasure to welcome Esteban as our new race driver.
“He’s an exceptional talent, as his status as a Mercedes Junior demonstrates, and I have no doubt he will flourish inside our team.
“We’ve had our eye on Esteban for a number of years and have followed his progress through the junior categories where he delivered outstanding results.
“We ran him in the car last year during testing and his performance convinced us that he is more than capable of racing alongside Sergio.”
