Spain Qualifying - Force India driver quotes

Nico Hulkenberg (11th, Q2 - 1:27.685)
"My lap was very good and I am pleased with the effort we put in during qualifying. We made some steps forward with handling and set-up compared to FP3 this morning, but we still ended up a little bit short of Q3. Considering that we haven't been totally comfortable with the car for most of the weekend, P11 is a very good place to start the race and gives us an extra set of medium tyres compared to the rest of the top ten. I expect a very strategic race tomorrow, especially as most of the teams around us seem to be on a similar level when it comes to race pace. It's going to be a challenge for everyone and tyre management will be a key point, but points are within our reach."

Sergio Perez (12th, Q2 - 1:28.002)
"I think we finished qualifying more or less where we expected. Maybe a place in Q3 was possible, but I did not manage to complete my final run in Q2 because my preparation lap was not ideal. There was too much traffic and my tyres were not optimised, which is why I chose to abort my final quick lap and save the tyres. Coming here we knew this track would be quite a difficult one for us, but we still believe we can be competitive tomorrow. I think the race will be all about getting the strategy choice right because it’s so difficult to overtake on this track. Our race pace is looking promising so we have a chance to get back some positions tomorrow.”

Vijay Mallya, Force India team principal and managing director
“Starting the Spanish Grand Prix in P11 and P12 is a good effort on a track that has always been one of the most challenging for us. Both drivers have been chasing the car balance during practice and struggling to optimise the car. A place in Q3 was not too far away and starting from the sixth row of the grid means we can race for points. We expect to have a similar level of race pace to a lot of the cars around us and making the right strategy calls tomorrow will be critical to making progress in the race.”

Formula1.com

Spanish GP - Friday Practice , Force India Driver quotes

Nico Hulkenberg, P1 - 1:28.828, 12th; P2 - 1:28.074, 11th
"It was generally a positive day and we got all the information we wanted from the two sessions. We still have some work to do to find some performance in the car as we have the potential to improve. The track here in Barcelona is very challenging and it is going to be key to find some extra grip, especially when working with the harder compound. Degradation is high here, last year was a four-stop race and I expect the demands for the tyres to remain high this year as well."

Sergio Perez, P1 - 1:28.779, 9th; P2 - 1:29.129, 16th
"Today has been a fairly challenging day. Our race pace looks good but it will be crucial to qualify well because overtaking is always difficult on this circuit. The compounds available for this weekend are very hard and this creates some issues with getting the tyres to work as desired. We need to work on this aspect with the engineers tonight and then we will be able to battle for a place in Q3, which has to be our aim."

Robert Fernley, Force India deputy team principal
"It's been a productive day with 100 laps completed and no significant loss of time. We were able to evaluate some upgrades in the morning session and we were happy with the results, so we retained them for FP2. It got very hot in the afternoon and this makes it hard to find enough grip, but we have identified the areas of the set-up we can work on to improve our performance. We will work with the data we have collected to achieve that tonight. Our long run pace looks good when compared to our rivals so we can use this as a starting point to improve the balance of our car overnight."

Formula1.com

Perez believes Spanish GP progress crucial for Force India F1 team

Sergio Perez thinks it 'crucial' that Force India's updates for the Spanish Grand Prix deliver a decent step forward if the team is to maintain its strong start to the Formula 1 campaign.

Force India has enjoyed its best ever start to a season - having scored a podium finish in Bahrain and currently holding third place in the constructors' championship.

But with the fight behind pacesetter Mercedes being so close, Perez is under no illusions that a slip-up in its development push could prove costly to its ambitions.

"It is crucial that we do a good step for Barcelona," Perez told AUTOSPORT. "It will be crucial to keep us in the [right] rhythm.

"We are in a good rhythm as a team and we need to keep progressing from there."

Force India has benefited from the impressive work of engine partner Mercedes, and knows that the key battleground from now will be in improving the aerodynamic qualities of the car.

"We need more downforce overall," added Perez. "You see everyone looking for rear downforce, and it would be good for have some downforce in general.

"I hope [the update package] is big enough to get us fighting with the big boys. It will be really good if we can keep this car going, and there is good room to improve."

Team-mate Nico Hulkenberg has high hopes that Force India can match the development rate of the bigger money teams it is fighting with.

"I think we can keep up," he said. "It is obviously hard to say for sure, but what I hear is that there is some good work done and stuff in the pipeline.

"I am optimistic we can have a competitive season."

Autosport.com
 

Spain Preview quotes - Force India

Nico Hulkenberg
2013 Qualifying - 15th, 2013 Race - 15th
“Even though we know the place inside out, it remains a tough, tricky circuit and one of those places where it’s especially important to optimise the car balance. If you don’t feel totally comfortable with the car it really hurts your lap time. Barcelona is the true test for downforce because of the quick corners in the first and second sectors. Traction is also important in the final part of the lap with the low-speed corners and we should be strong there.”

Sergio Perez
2013 Qualifying - 9th, 2013 Race - 9th
“I love coming back to Europe to race on some of the classic circuits. I enjoy Barcelona and for me it’s one of the best circuits on the whole calendar. It’s very complete with a mix of everything and some very long, quick corners. It’s tough physically, especially on the neck with so many right hand corners, but it’s a fun place to drive a Formula One car. It’s always a race where teams bring new updates so it’s going to be interesting to see how everyone will perform there.”

Dr Vijay Mallya, Force India team principal
“It’s encouraging that we have performed well across a wide range of circuits, so I’m optimistic that we can maintain our competitive form in Barcelona. China has never been an especially strong track for us, so to come away with ten points was a very good effort. We also expect our car to perform better in warmer conditions and there are some upcoming races that will play more to our strengths. At the same time we know that Formula One never stands still and Barcelona is always a pivotal moment in the development race, but I’m optimistic we can keep up our momentum.”

Formula1.com

Hulkenberg: P3 realistic for Force India

Nico Hulkenberg believes Force India is more than capable of maintaining its position of third in the constructors' championship for the rest of the season.

Hulkenberg has been one of the stand out performers in 2014 so far and is currently fourth in the drivers' standings. He and Sergio Perez have helped elevate Force India up the pecking order, and the team is currently enjoying its best start to an F1 season.

Though the Spanish GP represents the start of a ferocious development battle Hulkenberg is confident Force India can rise to the challenge and keep itself at the top end of the pack.

"We're up in third in the championship and we want to stay there. The hard work over the winter is paying off, but we know that Formula One is always a development race and things can change from one weekend to the next. So we need to keep working hard to maintain our good position."

"I've enjoyed the first part of the year. It's probably gone better than we were expecting after winter testing and it's good to keep picking up the points. I'm fourth with 36 points and I think that's a big achievement. The car has worked well everywhere and we've made the most of the opportunities. Consistency is surely one of our strengths at the moment."

Hulkenberg is convinced Barcelona is a track where Force India can continue its early form.

"Even though we know the place inside out, it remains a tough, tricky circuit and one of those places where it's especially important to optimise the car balance. If you don't feel totally comfortable with the car it really hurts your lap time.

"Barcelona is the true test for downforce because of the quick corners in the first and second sectors. Traction is also important in the final part of the lap with the low-speed corners and we should be strong there."

En.espnf1.com

Force India announces Smirnoff sponsorship deal

 

Force India will feature Smirnoff on its sidepod from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards after announcing a new partnership with the vodka manufacturer.
The team hopes the "fan-centric" partnership will "help lovers of the sport get closer to drivers, nearer to top quality race action and further away from exclusivity". Smirnoff is the latest drinks company to enter F1, following Martini's partnership with Williams which was announced on the eve of the season.
Force India also says Smirnoff will use its new partnership "to deliver a powerful anti-drink drive message".
"It's fantastic to see Smirnoff join the world of Formula One," said team owner and principal Vijay Mallya. "It's an iconic, global brand and we welcome them to the Sahara Force India family. As a team we've always mixed the highest professionalism on the track with great celebrations away from it and our partnership with Smirnoff reinforces these values. As we continue to make progress on the track, Smirnoff is the ideal brand to help celebrate these moments and open up the sport to new fans."
Smirnoff feels the reputation of Force India as a team willing to mix it with the traditional front-runners makes it a perfect partner.
"We love Sahara Force India's story, as well as its ability to help us communicate about responsibility and top quality performance," Matt Bruhn, the company's brand director, said. "This team is shaking up how we perceive racing and giving the establishment a real run for its money. We are thrilled to help them bring fans closer to the action and have lots of fun with this energetic, exciting team along the way."
As well as the branding on the sidepod, Smirnoff's "eyebrow" logo will also appear on its drivers' suits, helmets and team clothing.

Read more at http://en.espnf1.com/forceindia/motorsport/story/156167.html#Muyt7hu72b28eeds.99

 Force India will feature Smirnoff on its sidepod from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards after announcing a new partnership with the vodka manufacturer.

The team hopes the "fan-centric" partnership will "help lovers of the sport get closer to drivers, nearer to top quality race action and further away from exclusivity". Smirnoff is the latest drinks company to enter F1, following Martini's partnership with Williams which was announced on the eve of the season.

Force India also says Smirnoff will use its new partnership "to deliver a powerful anti-drink drive message".

"It's fantastic to see Smirnoff join the world of Formula One," said team owner and principal Vijay Mallya. "It's an iconic, global brand and we welcome them to the Sahara Force India family. As a team we've always mixed the highest professionalism on the track with great celebrations away from it and our partnership with Smirnoff reinforces these values. As we continue to make progress on the track, Smirnoff is the ideal brand to help celebrate these moments and open up the sport to new fans."

Smirnoff feels the reputation of Force India as a team willing to mix it with the traditional front-runners makes it a perfect partner.

"We love Sahara Force India's story, as well as its ability to help us communicate about responsibility and top quality performance," Matt Bruhn, the company's brand director, said. "This team is shaking up how we perceive racing and giving the establishment a real run for its money. We are thrilled to help them bring fans closer to the action and have lots of fun with this energetic, exciting team along the way."

As well as the branding on the sidepod, Smirnoff's "eyebrow" logo will also appear on its drivers' suits, helmets and team clothing.

En.espnf1.com

Force India revelling in McLaren plight

Force India is revelling in beating ex-technical partner McLaren in this season's Formula 1 constructors' title race, according to deputy team principal Bob Fernley.

Vijay Mallya's squad led McLaren for the first half of last year's battle, until its competitiveness faded following Pirelli's decision to tweak its tyre compounds in the face of repeated blowouts.

Force India currently lies third in the 2014 constructors' championship, 11 points ahead of McLaren, which has failed to score in the last two races.
Fernley reckons it will be difficult for Force India to raise its level to that of frontrunner Mercedes, or Red Bull, but he is hopeful the Silverstone-based outfit can continue to fight Ferrari and remain ahead of McLaren across the rest of the campaign.

"Lotus are struggling at the minute and are not where they want to be and McLaren would be our next competitor and they're struggling too. I'm not in the slightest bit sad about that - may their problems not be too insignificant!" Fernley told AUTOSPORT.

"It would be hard for us to compete with Red Bull and Mercedes. It's not going to be easy for us to [continue to] compete with Ferrari, but for as long as we can, we will."

Nico Hulkenberg fought Ferrari's Fernando Alonso in each of the first two races and Fernley said this represented a "major step" for Force India, despite the fact Hulkenberg finished a distant sixth to Alonso's third in China.

"If you look at our historical results we tend to be a bit up and down, whereas now we're absolutely consistent across the circuits," Fernley added.

"If you look at Ferrari, they're probably the exact opposite to us: Bahrain was an Achilles' heel for them and in China they fit in much better.

"It's just the DNA of the designs in some cases.

"If you look at Australia and Malaysia, Nico and Fernando were battling all the way through, so you get that bit in the middle as well.

"We come out of this [early part of the season] feeling quite pleased."

Autosport.com