Force India ready to relax team orders

Editor

Force India are close to letting Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon off the leash again as they look set to wrap up fourth spot in the World Constructors' Championship.

The team have been forced into employing strict orders between the pair after a number of collisions this season but, having moved 91 points clear of nearest challenger Williams, Perez and Ocon can prepare to go to battle again.

“Probably [after] one more race," said chief operating officer Otmar Szafnauer when asked by Autosport about when Perez and Ocon will be able to race freely.

“We have just got to get through one more race and hopefully by then we’ll have clinched fourth place. That’s what it is all about.

“Once we get through that then maybe we can relax and do things a bit differently in the last two.”

Perez has still been particularly vocal on team radio about being held up by his team-mate, but those complaints have fallen on deaf ears.

"Even if we let Checo past, the team wouldn’t have scored any more points,” said Szafnauer.

“It’s about us scoring points. We frankly don’t care which one scores the points, we don’t want to swap them around.

“We want to eliminate the risk and score the points. Once we are assured of fourth place, then we will change stuff.”