It's nothing new, it's been known for almost months, Sergio Pérez will continue in the Force India team, or as it is now known, Racing Point Force India, in the absence of the name being changed definitively by the current owners. The truth is that regarding the seats of Force India there was almost no intrigue to know who would succeed the current pilots, because we already knew that Pérez would continue and that his partner will be Lance Stroll due to the fortune of his father …
So this announcement does not contribute anything to know how it will finally be F1 grid 2019. Nor will Lance Stroll's announcement be of any use when it occurs, which by the way, in the case of Pérez, has been brought forward because it seemed that they would do it at the Mexican GP, the pilot's home, but they have gone ahead and they have done it in the COTA. We do not know if this announcement will have had some bad intention coinciding with the announcement of Coca-Cola for its sponsorship with the McLaren team, trying that those from Woking are not the absolute protagonists of the day.
As I say, this news is not what we want to hear, what we want to know now to determine the complete grid for next year is who will be the driver that remains to be confirmed in Williams and who the pilot who occupies the other seat of Toro Rosso. In both cases there have already been some details and rumors that could indicate who will occupy it. In the case of the Grove, Robert Kubica has seen himself visiting a Polish oil company to try to raise the money that he should contribute to occupy that seat...
In the case of Toro Rosso, they were thinking of Esteban Ocon, but his relationship with Mercedes makes it impossible. They also talked about keeping Hartley but at the last minute it seems totally ruled out. Another rumor was that of Schumacher's son, but the pilot himself has ruled out going up to F1 and prefers to go step by step and not rush. Therefore, there has now been talk of a Nissan Formula E driver, which is Alexander Albon. In fact, Nissan is already taking steps to fill the gap, so it seems quite possible that the transfer will happen.