According to a strong rumour in the Fuji paddock, McLaren-Mercedes is looking to give Paul di Resta his formula one debut as soon as possible.

The 22-year-old Scot, however, would not be housed at the Woking based team, but at a customer Mercedes-powered partner outfit.

The speculation ties in with stories that McLaren is close to an agreement with Force India about 2009.

The deal would see Mercedes engines, a McLaren KERS system, and possibly other technical support delivered to the Silverstone based team, which is currently powered by customer Ferrari engines.

Di Resta, who races for Mercedes' premier effort in the DTM series, may also be part of the deal, although other private teams are also rumoured to be in similar talks with McLaren.

The British driver recently made his test debut in a McLaren. "I don't want people jumping to conclusions but I was quite happy with the way it went," di Resta said.

"I felt I belong in F1 from the moment I saw the car. Sebastian Vettel was my (F3) teammate in 2006 and managed to beat me once in 20 races.

"The future is the future. Whatever happens next season, it would be nice to do it as the DTM champion," he added.

Source: GMM