BREAKING: Pérez extends contract at Force India!

It has been coming for a while, but Sergio Pérez has now officially extended his expiring deal at Force India, confirming that the Mexican will line up for the Pink Panthers for the two seasons to come.

'Checo' Pérez currently sits in the same position in the drivers' standings where he finished last season, which is in seventh - best of the rest. He's on the same amount of points as both Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hülkenberg, but as the Mexican has the highest-placed finish this season, he's officially ahead of the Haas and Renault driver.

That highest-placed position, which is his podium-finish in Baku early this year as he opportunistically finished third (see picture above), is something which has happened regularly for him. He never has one of the quickest cars on the grid, but he has this talent for being in the right place to pounce when a driver at the front of the grid drops out.

A Ferrari Driver Academy product until 2012, the Mexican made his debut in F1 for Sauber in 2011, scoring three podiums for the Swiss teams in the two years he spent there.

When Lewis Hamilton moved from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 season, Pérez was signed by the British team to fill the gap (and subsequently he left the Ferrari driving program). However, things did not go well for the then-23-year-old, as he was often criticized for his aggressive driving by other drivers, with Kimi Raikkonen even saying that Pérez "should be punched in the face". At the end of the year, he left McLaren, signing for Force India.

Since then (2014), he's been at the team. He's scored five podiums for them over the years, and played a vital part in the lowest-budget team ending best of the rest in the constructors' standings for two straight seasons.

Pérez will likely be joined by Lance Stroll at Force India, as the Canadian's father has bought a big stake in Force India this summer. Once that has been announced, it will officially mean that Esteban Ocon is without an F1 seat for the 2019-season.