Sergio Perez will remain a Force India driver in 2016 after agreeing an extension to his contract.

The Mexican driver had agreed a multi-year deal late last season which was structured as a one-plus-one contract, with options needing to be taken up for 2016. Terms have now been agreed for next season, keeping Perez with the team for a third consecutive year.

Team principal Vijay Mallya says Perez - who joined the team from McLaren at the end of 2013 - has been driving at his best in recent races following the introduction of Force India's B-spec car.

“I’m very happy Sergio has committed his future to Sahara Force India," Mallya said. "He’s done a fantastic job for us already and when we give him a competitive car we know he can get the job done.

"He’s also got a great attitude and never gives up – it’s that fighting spirit which fits well with this team. You only have to look at his results in the last three races to see that he is performing at the top of his game.

"It’s an exciting time for Sergio, especially with the upcoming race in Mexico next month, and with our close connections to the country I’m sure it will be a highlight for everybody in the team.”

Perez will remain part of an unchanged Force India line-up for the third year running, with team-mate Nico Hulkenberg agreeing a new deal earlier this month.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

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