Merhi admits he has "no idea" about WEC future

Having raced for Graeme Lowdon and John Booth's Manor F1 team in 2015, Merhi joined the British duo for their first foray into sportscars, campaigning an Oreca 05-Nissan in seven of the nine WEC rounds this season.

The Spaniard picked up a best result of third in the LMP2 class the 6 Hours of Spa racing alongside Matt Rao and Richard Bradley.

"In general it’s been really good – especially Le Mans, which was an incredible experience," said Merhi of his season at Manor.

"We were really competitive in the race, even though we couldn’t get a result because of the issues of other drivers. For sure there are always thing to improve, but generally we’re happy."

Asked if he expected to remain at Manor in 2017, he replied: "At the moment, I’ve no idea. It's a good opportunity and a good team, but let’s see.

"It’s difficult to know if you don’t have a budget. LMP2 is professional, but it’s not like LMP1 or GTE-Pro. LMP1 is a good option, but at the moment [there have been no offers], no."

While admitting he lacks the money needed to finance a return to F1, Merhi - who raced in Formula 3.5 as recently as 2015 - says he still wants to race single-seaters, and says Formula E might be a good fit.

"It’s a good championship, interesting tracks and professional drivers," he said of the all-electric series. "I prefer formula cars [to sportscars], to be honest."

Rating his chances of such a move, he added: "Not much, at the moment I don’t know."

Interview by Khodr Rawi