Adrian Sutil is still not giving up on the Force India race seat for 2013.
The vacancy is the only one left in F1 with less than five weeks until the Melbourne season opener.
But, currently, Frenchman Jules Bianchi and Narain Karthikeyan appear better placed, even though Force India reportedly refused to comment on reports the latter Indian driver is now in the frame.
German Sutil’s manager Manfred Zimmermann, meanwhile, told motorsport-magazin.com: "We are convinced that it will work out.
"But unfortunately we have to keep our fingers crossed and be patient," he added.