Official: Force India retains Sutil and Liuzzi for 2010

The Force India team has confirmed that it will retain Vitantonio Liuzzi and Adrian Sutil for the approximately twenty races of the 2010 season. It will be the German’s fourth consecutive season in an Indian seat, while Liuzzi secures a full-time spot for the first time since 2007.

“We are very happy to retain the services of Adrian and Tonio for another season,” said team boss Vijay Mallya. “We have always supported consistency as part of the team’s development. For the first time in many years, we will ensure continuity not only with the same drivers but also with the same engine and management.”

With this stability now in place, I sincerely believe that we have an excellent platform to build upon and advance our strong performance from 2009. I am sure that we have one of the most dynamic line-ups on the grid. I hope this will put us in a good position for what we hope will be a transitional year for the team.

Sutil declared: « 2010 will be my fourth consecutive year with the team. I feel good here, it’s like a family. If you feel comfortable, you can be totally focused so that things go well. Next season, I want to be in the points regularly, even why not some podiums. The team has exactly the same goals. We are moving in the right direction, with our combined energies I am convinced that we can achieve even more than last season. »

Liuzzi, who was the reserve driver for the past two years, is thrilled to secure a full-time seat. The Italian drove for Force India in the last five races of the 2009 season, replacing Giancarlo Fisichella, who moved to Ferrari.

« It has always been my goal to drive full-time in 2010 and I have finally achieved it. I feel that the five races I did in 2009 were somewhat tests to learn how to handle the car. Now, I feel ready. We were quite strong in the latter part of the 2009 season so, if we pick up where we left off, I think we could have a good year, » he stated.

The announcement regarding the third driver will be made in the weeks following the ‘young driver’ test in Jerez next week.