Perez says he would turn down a mid-season switch to Ferrari

Perez is a member of Ferrari's young driver programme and the Sauber driver has been linked with Felipe Massa's seat following the Brazilian's poor start to the campaign.

The Mexican, who made his grand prix debut with the Swiss squad last year, has enjoyed an impressive start to the season, fighting for victory with Fernando Alonso at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Perez has made it clear that he would turn down an offer to move to Ferrari mid-season, but he insisted talk about his switch is just speculation.

"Should that situation really come about I would reject it as I would not want to make a switch in the middle of a season," Perez told the official Formula 1 website. "I think all this hype about a possible switch is massively blown up by the media.

"I started the season with Sauber and will finish my season with Sauber - giving my 100 per cent to my team."

When asked if there was any truth about the talks of a move, he said: "Rumours - nothing more. I believe that Felipe will bounce back and do a good job. He is a strong driver and he has a great team behind him. Once he's bounced back all these stories will die at once.

"I think that people should not mix up engines and drivers. These sort of rumours have been around for quite a while and, of course, I have a connection to Ferrari, to their driver academy of Ferrari. But my position is clear: I am driving for Sauber and I will remain here."