Report – Force India Starts 2009 with a Good Race

There are no points at the end of the race, but the first Grand Prix of the season was a success for Force India. Both drivers did not retire and are on the verge of scoring points in 9th and 11th positions after Trulli’s penalty. Only Fisichella’s incident in the pit lane might be considered a regret.

The collaboration with McLaren and Mercedes is therefore bearing fruit, and the goal of scoring points is now achievable.

Adrian Sutil – 9th (finished 10th):

As expected, we had a very exciting race! I had a good start, but in the first corner, I think Webber slowed me down and there was nowhere I could go. I damaged my front wing, so a pit stop was on the horizon.

« Then I lost a bit of time behind Heidfeld because I was faster, but there was no way to overtake him. After the first safety car, everything was fine, we had a good strategy with a short stint on the soft tires. At the restart, I was able to get past a few cars. With this 10th position, I think we can be happy. »

Giancarlo Fisichella – 11th (finished 12th):

« I am very disappointed with the mistake I made during my pit stop. I mixed it up with our last year’s position in the Pitlane. I am really sad because we could have achieved a good result. We can be satisfied because there are positive aspects since we were able to compete with the other cars. I am looking forward to the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Vijay Mallya – Chairman of the team:

« I am absolutely delighted with the result we achieved here today. Considering the relatively late start of the VJM02 and the changes this winter, having two cars at the finish is a fantastic result. »

The two drivers had an excellent race and showed that we have made improvements both in pace and in the balance of the car. Considering that our goal was to finish the race, placing both our cars in the top 12 is well beyond our expectations.