It is claimed that Force India is on the verge of announcing Scot Paul di Resta as its second driver, alongside Adrian Sutil, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the role of test driver.

With the line-up at Toro Rosso still not officially confirmed by the Faenza based team, even though the Italian outfit is virtually certain to be retaining Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari, only Force India and Hispania have yet to name their drivers.

For some time now there has been speculation that di Resta would replace Tonio Liuzzi however, Williams decision to drop Hulkenberg in favour of GP2 champion Pastor Maldonado left the highly rated German still on the market.

Swiss newspaper Blick today claims that a deal has been done which will see di Resta in the second car while Hulkenberg's duties will include the Friday practice sessions at this year's events.

Di Resta has many admirers in the F1 paddock, and his success for Mercedes in last year's 2010 DTM series will have only added to the pressure on team bosses as they made their decision.

After a largely unconvincing season it is still surprising to see Hulkenberg out of a regular race seat and it comes as no surprise to hear that his manager, Willi Weber, had been looking for a test role with McLaren. However, according to the German, who used to manage Michael Schumacher, McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh felt that Hulkenberg's presence might put unnecessary pressure on the team and affect harmony.

On a side note, we hear that money continues to be an issue for the Silverstone-based outfit. One supplier - who (obviously) asked not to be named - told Pitpass: "Have you heard the one about Force India not being able to pay their suppliers (of which we are one) and suppliers withholding work. And also being late in paying their staff?

"If VJ sold his boat it would keep the team going for a couple of years," added the source.

Furthermore, we hear that the team recently passed up the opportunity of recruiting a proven sponsorship manager (formerly with McLaren and Renault), as its Commercial Director claiming they couldn't afford him and instead going for a cheaper and unproven option.