10/02/2016
NEWS STORY
Intense media speculation in Germany that Pascal Wehrlein has secured Manor seat.
The reigning DTM champion, who has also been reserve driver for the Mercedes F1 team for the last two years, as well as enjoying outings with Force India, seemed an obvious choice for the Banbury outfit as it strives to move into the midfield.
However, just before Christmas it appeared the move might be off… then, in the last 24 hours the German media began reporting that the deal would be done soon.
Today, though there is no official word from Manor, Mercedes or Wehrlein, Autobild quotes the German youngster as saying that his "dream has come true" and that he will be on the grid this season.
Manor, which looked set to follow Caterham into oblivion at the end of 2014 somehow survived, largely courtesy of the intervention of Ovo Energy boss Stephen Fitzpatrick, not to mention the prize money secured by Jules Bianchi following his superb drive at Monaco in 2014.
In recent months, other than securing Mercedes engines for the MRT, and an impressive technical partnership with Williams, the team has started recruiting some formidable talent including aerodynamicist Nikolas Tombazis and Pat Fry.
The second seat at Manor is still up for grabs, with Will Stevens, Alexander Rossi, Roberto Merhi and Rio Haryanto all linked with the drive.