Force India grants Nico Hulkenberg release to join Renault F1 team

Hulkenberg has already agreed terms with Renault, but the final hurdle to allow the deal to be completed required Force India to agree to his departure before the end of his contract.

On Friday morning, Force India team boss Vijay Mallya confirmed that step.

"Everybody at Force India wishes Nico well as he embarks upon a different path in Formula 1," said Mallya.

"Having spent five years with us, Nico has become a great friend and contributed a huge amount to the team's success.

"He's an outstanding driver, who has scored more points for this team than anybody else.

"While it's true we will miss Nico, we respect his decision to explore fresh opportunities and it would be wrong to stand in his way."

Hulkenberg first joined Force India in 2011 as a reserve driver, stepping up to a race drive for '12 before spending a year at Sauber and then returning to Force India in '14.

While he has enjoyed a relatively successful spell with the Silverstone-based squad, he has been unable to score a podium finish so far, while team-mate Sergio Perez has scored four third places in that time.