Advantage Di Resta according to Nico Hülkenberg
The German driver believes that his teammate will have a certain advantage during the first races and wants to put into perspective the impressive performances shown by the Force India VJM05 during testing, while confirming the Indian team's ambition to secure fifth place in the constructors' standings.
On the eve of the resumption of private testing in Barcelona, Nico Hülkenberg, who set the fastest time there last Wednesday, shares his first impressions of the new Force India on the official Formula One website: « We have had good tests so far and are quite happy with how it has gone. Each day, we learned more about the car and the new tires, which is great because we can quickly report any issues to the factory. […] We haven’t encountered a single technical problem and were able to complete the entire scheduled program. I know that’s quite a luxury with a new car. »
The German driver, however, isn’t making a big deal out of the encouraging performances displayed so far by the VJM05: « I suppose all the teams are focused on their respective programs and trying to prepare as well as possible for the season. This means sometimes you’re running on super-soft tires, sometimes on hard tires, sometimes with heavy fuel loads and sometimes with less fuel. There are a million different things you can change in your settings. That’s what we’ve been doing too, so we shouldn’t overestimate the meaning of the lap times. Everyone knows that the leading teams haven’t shown their true strengths yet, so we’ll have to wait until Saturday in Australia. Until then, it’s all just speculation. »
If he does not feel particularly disadvantaged by his previous season as Force India’s third driver, which allowed him to participate in 14 Friday morning free practice sessions, Nico Hülkenberg nevertheless believes that his teammate, Paul di Resta, will have a certain advantage during the first races: « If I am to be disadvantaged, it will be more during qualifying and the race where it will be felt. [Paul di Resta] is accustomed to the procedures of a race weekend, the DRS, the KERS, etc., and I will have to, at first, find my rhythm again. But this disadvantage will disappear after a few races. »
After a season where the Sahara Force India team confirmed its progress, competing in the fall with the Lotus team and even Mercedes, Vijay Mallya has stayed the course by setting the objective of achieving fifth place in the constructor’s standings: “I think we have a good chance to finish in fifth place in the constructor’s championship,” confirms Nico Hülkenberg. “It certainly won’t be easy, but I am sure it’s possible. As for my hopes, I hope we will have more rainy days [note: like this Saturday afternoon under the Brazilian ‘chuva’ which allowed him to get his first pole position in 2010] and a few open races that would allow smaller teams, like us, to enjoy unexpected results. Finally, concerning my dreams, it would be to experience even more moments like in Brazil, in 2010!”
