Sergio Perez’s bid for a Ferrari race cockpit for 2017 could have got an eight-digit boost.
The Mexican is riding a wave of confidence and form at present after two podiums in the last three races for the little Silverstone-based team Force India.
"He still has the fiery image of a young driver but now we also see he is methodical, calm and able to resist pressure," former F1 driver Franck Montagny told Le Point.
"Now we will have to see if he can resist media pressure too, with these rumours," added the Frenchman.
Indeed, while Ferrari and the 26-year-old have played down the speculation, rumours continue to link Perez with a move to Maranello next year.
Germany’s Auto Bild claims that bid could have been boosted even more by his backer, Carlos Slim, who already sponsors Ferrari via Haas driver Esteban Gutierrez.
The report said Slim, who according to Forbes is the world’s fourth-richest billionaire, is willing to boost his sponsorship by an eight-digit figure if Perez is chosen to replace Kimi Raikkonen.
As for rumours that Mercedes is also interested in Perez, team boss Toto Wolff said: "That’s not true."