Force India switches to McLaren and Mercedes

New Delhi, Nov 10 (UNI) Force India has signed a long-term contract with German carmaker Mercedes and McLaren for its next season after it terminated its technical partnership with Ferrari last week.

Force India formula one team owner Vijay Mallya said in a statement today that McLaren Applied Technologies would supply them with gearbox and hydraulic systems.

The team also plans to use a KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) developed by Mercedes and McLaren and will have access to McLaren's network of suppliers as well as operational support.

''We are absolutely delighted to be able to announce a technical partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies and Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines, and also our plan to expand the composite manufacturing capability and drawing office within our Silverstone facility,'' Mallya said in a statement.

''These new resources and developments will provide an enormous boost to our technical armoury and, as a result, we have high hopes of making good progress in 2009 and beyond.

''Force India has been in existence for only one year, and inevitably our first season has constituted a learning period.

But we said at the outset that we meant business and were not interested in merely making up the numbers,'' he added.

The Force India Formula One team failed to register a single point in their tally this season and along with while it terminated its engine contract with Ferrari a year early, it also sacked Colin Kolles as principal and Mike Gascoyne as its technical head last week.

''The announcement of our new technical partnership, combined with the new developments and resources outlined above, clearly underlines that we meant what we said,'' the statement added.

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