Sergio Perez believes Haas will be a threat to Force India "straight away" in 2016 despite it being the team's debut F1 season.
Haas enters the sport after a long period of preparation having deferred its entry from 2015 in order to give itself more time to build its infrastructure. With Haas having entered in to a close technical partnership with Ferrari, when asked if Perez expects the new team to be a threat this season he replied: "Definitely.
"Haas can be a strong challenge. I think they are going to be fighting with us straight away.
"I think having a strong link with Ferrari will help them a lot and give them a lot of direction. I expect them to be a good team straight away."
Haas will run Romain Grosjean and Esteban Gutierrez as its driver line-up in 2016 having opted for experience alongside a Ferrari reserve. Perez believes joining Haas was a risk worth taking for Grosjean having had two uncompetitive years at Lotus.
"It is a big challenge to go for a new team. At the same time he knows he won’t win the championship where he was so I was not really surprised. He is looking for another target and, who knows, it could be the right decision for his future."
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