Paul di Resta must sell himself for top drive

Traffic jams, white-knuckle tuk tuk rides, all-enveloping smoke hazes, sinking airlines, open sewers; there has been no shortage of colour to accompany the Indian Grand Prix this week. That is not a word you would naturally associate with the 'home' team's British driver, -however.

Force India's Paul di Resta is about as far from colourful as a Formula One driver gets. Not for him the bombast of a Kevin Pietersen, whose pyrotechnics for the Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League have made him a sporting superstar in Delhi, raking in a reported $1 million (pounds 621,000) per season.

The 26 year-old is an excellent driver, one who has impressed all with his speed and poise behind the wheel. So much so that both Ferrari and McLaren were interested in acquiring his services for 2013. The fact that they did not may point to an Achilles' heel on Di Resta's part; a struggle to sell himself, to open up to fans and reporters. This is a useful commodity in the commercial world of Formula One, especially for a driver without financial backing. Teams need drivers to win, sponsors need them to sell. The fact that Di Resta has made only a limited impact on the UK media during his two full seasons in the sport, despite there being only three British drivers, tells its own story.

Di Resta is too polite to say that is the reason McLaren have taken on Mexican Sergio Perez as Lewis Hamilton's replacement next year, but he hints it may be what he thinks.

Perez "opens up various different markets", he says. "But listen, it was flattering to be linked to a team like McLaren. It has not come off this time but that doesn't mean you should become any less ambitious."

It may be that if Di Resta wants to make that move up to a top team, he needs to open up a bit more, to show a different side to himself and to sponsors. To his credit, it is not a charge he denies. "I think it's a big thing," he says, sitting in Force India's motor home in the Indian paddock.

"I understand the need to get out there and show people who you are. There is another side to this sport. At the end of the day you build your own brand and we all want to be associated with big teams. It's just about being more open but it takes time. You have to build trust. You can easily get bitten."

Earlier this year, Di Resta had an ugly and much publicised falling out with his manager, Anthony Hamilton, who coincidentally was back in the McLaren motor home on Friday, supporting his son. Their dispute is headed for the High Court.

Has that experience made him more guarded? "It's not an ideal situation," he admits, "but it happened and you learn your lessons as you do with everything in life. It makes you grow as a person and makes you into the person that you are." And what kind of a person is that?

Those who know Di Resta well speak of an engaging character, cautious certainly, but not the taciturn driver who can show up at press conferences. And certainly not the diva who allegedly sent back his salad a few races ago because the Parmesan shavings were not to his liking. His management dismissed the rumour as preposterous.

Jenson Button and David Coulthard, neighbours and training partners in Monaco, both attest to a well-rounded individual with a good sense of humour. In fact, Button rates Di Resta so highly he and his manager, Richard Goddard, signed him to their Sports Partnership stable.

It was speculated the possible conflict of interest may have counted against Di Resta when McLaren were weighing up their decision. "I don't believe that," Di Resta says. "I know Martin [Whitmarsh, McLaren team principal] well. He was a key individual in getting me into Formula One.

"I'm happy with Richard's involvement and the way it works, and I think Martin was equally happy with Richard's involvement."

Either way, Di Resta will be a Force India driver next year. And while the team have their financial issues - the plight of their two major sponsors, Kingfisher and Sahara, has been much in the news this week - the Scot says he has "assurances" the team's budget will not be affected.

So confident is Di Resta that Force India can continue their current upward trend he feels his team-mate, Nico Hulkenberg, would be "gambling" by jumping ship to Sauber.

"We are scoring more points each year," he says. "I don't know what Nico's plans are but I see this team as equally as strong as Sauber, if not more so with the stability we have. I'm happy where I am."

Not forever, though. Di Resta is desperate to make that leap to one of the big teams. Whether he gets the chance may depend on whether he can impress as much out of the car as he has in it.

"You haven't seen the real me yet," he smiles. "The way I see it up until now I have needed to focus on the driving side, to get myself to where I'm happy to start exploring other things. I'm more comfortable now."