Force India galvanized by its results before arriving at Silverstone

Upon leaving Valencia with fifth and seventh places under the checkered flag, the Force India team left with more points than it had ever scored in a single Grand Prix since the introduction of the 25-point system. These points proved to be very beneficial because they bring us within one point of Williams and only sixteen points from Sauber. So we are closing the gap with our closest rivals. Now, we must continue with this momentum, confides Vijay Mallya, team director-owner of the Indian team. The Indian businessman adds: As for our drivers, they were both brilliant in Valencia. Paul was the only one to succeed on a one-stop strategy, which was excellent, while with the fifth place, Nico achieved his best result in Formula One. I believe this will be a huge boost for Nico, and it’s a result he deserves after a few unlucky races this year.

Paul di Resta and Nico Hülkenberg also hope to continue the momentum from Valencia: “The level of performance we showed in Valencia was an encouragement for the team and if we can build on that at Silverstone, I am convinced we can continue to put on a show. The guys at the factory are working hard to bring us new developments in time for the weekend, we hope we can find a bit of performance,” says the Scotsman. For the German, the result in Valencia is a boost: “I think it was the kind of result we have been waiting for some time now. We thought we could do something similar in Canada but it didn’t work out, so it was good to take a few points in Valencia and start to show our true potential. It is true that some cars retired from the race but we still have to do the job and that’s what we did.”

If Vijay Mallya reminds us that Force India’s factories are close to Silverstone — in fact, the closest of all the teams based on Her Majesty’s land — and that this naturally constitutes a source of motivation, he also highlights the specific atmosphere of the British Grand Prix: « It’s also one of the events on the calendar with the best atmosphere thanks to the passion of British fans who always show tremendous support. For our team, it’s certainly a highlight of the season. » Paul di Resta agrees with his boss: « For me, it’s the biggest event we participate in, particularly in terms of British fan support, which is always tremendous. You feel it as soon as you arrive on Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon because the fans are already there camping. The atmosphere is electric, and I remember the driver parade last year was one of the highlights of the season: it really gives me chills because of the reactions and the fact that there wasn’t an empty seat. »

But the Scotsman also has plenty of compliments for the Silverstone circuit itself: « It’s a track that really makes you appreciate what a Formula One car is capable of, especially the level of grip in fast corners and changes of direction. Everyone talks about Maggotts and Becketts, but there’s nothing like it anywhere else in the world. I also appreciate the new section, and each year we go back there, it gets better and better. The new section has definitely created more overtaking opportunities, especially with the introduction of DRS, so it’s been a good thing. »

Hülkenberg, who was not a regular driver in 2011, will not discover the new section since he was able to do so last year during a Friday morning free practice session. The German has fond memories of the English circuit where he has already driven in GP2 and in Formula One with Williams: « It’s one of those classic races that makes you smile when you think of some of its corners. In fact, I describe it as an “old-school” circuit because it’s narrow and you really have to be dedicated and brave in the fast sections of the lap. It’s super fast and a lot of fun when you manage to achieve a perfect lap. »

The objective at Silverstone will therefore be to score big points again: We will have some developments on the car this weekend and we will give it our all to try to come away with another solid result, ambitions Vijay Mallya. I think our performance in Valencia showed how much we learned from the tough lessons in Canada in understanding the tires and being aggressive with strategy. The goal this weekend is to repeat this performance, score points, and continue pushing hard to progress in the championship standings.

Nico Hülkenberg, for his part, especially hopes that reliability will be present: [In Valencia,] I lost the KERS from the seventh lap, making it difficult to overtake or defend my position, but I pushed as hard as I could, and we managed to leave with a great result. We showed that we were strong all weekend and that we are constantly improving from race to race. Now I’m just looking forward to getting back in the car at Silverstone.