After a false start with Red Bull and further talks with Williams, Force India had emerged as the most likely partner if the car company decided it wanted to enter F1.

Force India team boss Vijay Mallya openly admitted that a deal with a premium brand like Aston Martin would be a huge boost to the team.

But despite lengthy negotiations, the matter had not got far enough to get the green light from the manufacturer.

In fact, sources with good knowledge of the situation had suggested earlier this week that the talks were actually losing momentum, having not got the necessary backing from senior management.

A report on Sky on Tuesday night furthermore claimed the board had not given the idea the support it needed at a meeting a few days ago.

Sky quoted a source as saying: "There is a definite inclination not to do it - in 2016, at least. But it could certainly be revisited in future."

Wider plan

However, the company's director of marketing and communications Simon Sproule has indicated that the matter is still under discussion.

And he made it clear that a decision would not just involve F1, as it revolved around its wider motor sport activities.

“We have not made any decision,” Sproule told Motorsport.com. “And we are not likely to make any final decision about either F1 or the broader motor sport strategy until the New Year.

“We also have to figure out what our path forward in sportscar racing is, and where we go with that. We are not looking at F1 in isolation.”