'No animosity' to Perez in Force India

Force India team principal says there is no "animosity" towards Sergio Perez after action taken by the drivers' management team left them in administration. The Mexican is reportedly owed £3million by the financially stricken team, but deputy team principal Bob Fernley has backed his driver.

A London court placed Force India into administration on Friday, taking the future of the team out of long-term owner Vijay Mallya's hands.

The billionaire fathers of Williams driver Lance Stroll and GP3 racer Nikita Mazepin are reportedly interested in investing into the team, while it appears a bid from British-based drinks company Rich Energy has fallen flat.

Although Perez and his manager Julian Jakobi are thought to have taken the action to have plunged the team's future into doubt, Fernley says the move is justified, given the driver has gone without pay.

"There can't be any animosity," Fernley told Autosport. "Whatever happens, like everybody else, Checo is entitled to be paid.

"Unfortunately we were not in a position to be able to pay him, and patience runs out for everybody. So, that's a process.

"I don't think we in any way look negatively at him. The responsibility for payment is on the team, not on Checo.

"He's been put in a difficult position. I think we have to respect his position, and not criticise it."

Consecutive fourth-place finishes in the constructors' championship have not been enough to stave off financial difficulties at Force India, increasing the need for Mallya to seek additional investment.

"The first thing to say is that the current shareholders have done everything in their power to try to stabilise the company and to find investment, and to move forward to take the team where they wanted to take it," Fernley said. "Unfortunately that didn't work out.

"We've got to recognise what Vijay's done. In 10 years he's taken the team from a really bad state of health into something that was competitive.

"It's just unfortunate that circumstances have not allowed him to continue."