Interview with Force India drivers: "Hopefully, we'll have a successful weekend again"

Paul di Resta believes that his season so far, five races into the 2013 championship, has been at the brink of perfection while teammate Adrian Sutil, deserted by Lady Luck, is hanging on to his poise.

Di Resta had a glimpse of a podium in Bahrain last month and followed up with a late flourish to attack Nico Rosberg in Spain two weeks ago for sixth place. The Mercedes had started from pole position and although the Scot finished behind the German at Catalunya, the Force India driver is convinced that he is in his prime this year.

“I would put it at a nine (out of ten) probably,” di Resta rated his performance so far this season.

“I have definitely extracted a nine if not more,” he asserted. “It’s been a very good start. I think we have explored as much as we could. Obviously a bit of bad luck in China and Malaysia, other than that we have optimised our races.”

A resident of Monaco, host to this weekend’s race, di Resta remains focused in what he described was an exceptional start to his campaign after he scored points in four of the first five races, placing him eighth in the standings ahead of Rosberg and the two McLaren drivers.

“We’re trying to optimise some upgrades (in Monaco) that we brought to Barcelona,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll have a successful weekend again.”

In recent years, Force India has never looked this good to claim a podium position, a result that has evaded the team since the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix, although the wait could be a bit longer.

“That’s a bit optimistic,” di Resta replied when asked if a top three finish in the streets of Monte Carlo was a realistic bet. “But never say never. We’ll see how the car performs in practice and after that we’ll have more of an idea.”

Sutil, meanwhile, was a bit more sanguine than his teammate.

“I have the same expectations as every other race really,” the German told F1Pulse.com. “It’s a circuit I really like and I am happy to be here.

“The target is high. What can I say? I am not a rookie anymore,” he smirked. “I want to have results.”

Force India has had strong results in Monaco in the past three years, which included a double-points finish in 2010 and 2012, and a seventh place in 2011, courtesy of Sutil. Giancarlo Fisichella was just under two seconds away from a scoring position in 2009 when the Italian finished ninth.

Sutil’s love for Monaco started in his debut season with Force India in 2008 when he was running as high as fourth before Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari collided into the rear of the German’s car just six laps from the finish. The incident ended his race.

This time, however, he is hoping that any probable on-track incidents on the sinewy track located in the south of France would play into his favour.

“The chances here are high to make an exceptional race. If you make the right decisions and have a good strategy here, everything is possible,” Sutil said on his podium hopes. “It’s a street race. More incidents normally happen. There’s a big chance of accidents and a safety car period.

“It can go your way or the other way. But chances are really high that you can make a good result here,” he acknowledged. “That’s my target, that’s my focus.”

Six points, against di Resta’s 26, is all Sutil has to show in what is his comeback season, after retirements in Malaysia and China, where he was rear-ended by rookie Esteban Gutierrez’s Sauber. An issue during a pit stop, as was at the Malaysian GP, resurfaced in Spain which robbed him of another opportunity.

None of the problems were of the 30-year-old’s making.

“It’s important not to lose the confidence, not to lose the faith in your driving and try it again,” a resilient Sutil said. “Never give up is my motto, I always say. You have to work hard for your success. Sometimes it takes a little bit longer and sometimes it’s quicker. It’s important to hang on and try to always maximise your potential.”

Sutil is dealing with his season calmly, despite the early setbacks, certain that he will be gifted rightly for his persistence.

“On the result side, it’s not good,” he observed pointing out that the performance of the car and race pace offered much promise. “Theoretically, I should have been on the podium twice already. We missed out a podium in Bahrain. We had a very good race pace in Barcelona where I could have been fifth.”

“The race pace and the speed in general is not a problem. Small mistakes caused big problems,” he said looking back at his five races.

For almost all teams, tyre problems have headlined the season so far and it could be no different at the Monaco Grand Prix with Pirelli predicting at least two pit stops per car this weekend.

“It’ll be more difficult to one-stop than last year,” di Resta reckoned. “We’re relatively hopeful that some people will have higher wear that we can take advantage of.”

The Italian tyre manufacturer has pledged to make changes to its product by the Canadian Grand Prix next month, leaving Force India with new questions to be answered.

“We’re yet to see exactly what Pirelli are going to change but obviously, we as a team would prefer not to change,” di Resta said. “On the positive side, the new construction might suit the car more. There’s a 50-50 chance it could go either way. What we’ll do is do the best we can.”

Pirelli has clarified that the alterations would be minor and will be addressing the delamination that several drivers suffered from, including di Resta, who had a rear-tyre failure during practice in Spain.

“I believe they are making the changes based on safety recommendations,” di Resta said.

Published with permission from F1Pulse

All quotes credited to F1Pulse.