Austrain GP - Practice - Force India Quotes

Force India seemed to lack pace around the circuit, with Perez in particular struggling. The Mexican was also almost collected by Verstappen as they battled for space. With the midfield battle extremely close, it looks to be a tough ask for the cars in pink to both make Q3 come qualifying.

Sergio Perez - FP1: 1:06.455, P14; FP2: 1:06.354, P18
“I don’t think we really showed our true speed today, especially in second practice when our run was affected by the red flag. The sessions went to plan, but I’m not yet comfortable with the car balance. That’s where we need to work tonight to see if we can find something in the data to improve things before qualifying. If we can find a couple of tenths it will make a massive difference on this short track. Of course, we think it’s going to be much hotter tomorrow and the higher temperatures will impact on car balance again. We will have a lot of work to do in final practice to get on top of things.”

Esteban Ocon - FP1: 1:06.055, P8; FP2: 1:06.133, P13
“We were expecting some rain today so it’s quite a relief to have two dry sessions. We completed lots of laps and just worked through the programme. It was all pretty normal, trying the test items, improving the set-up and understanding the tyres. The morning pace was solid with P8, but second practice was a bit more challenging. We haven’t found the best balance for the car yet so we need to improve for tomorrow.”

Otmar Szafnauer, Chief Operating Officer
“It was a busy Friday dominated by cool temperatures and overcast skies, which is not what we expect for the rest of the weekend. Despite a red flag in the afternoon, we had plenty of track time that allowed us to collect information on all the available tyre compounds and to run on both high and low fuel. The tyres are behaving as we were expecting, but we will need to adapt what we learnt to the temperatures we are anticipating for the rest of the weekend. Finding a good balance will be a challenge because this is not an easy track for optimising car set-up. We have a lot of work ahead of us tonight as the focus shifts to the final changes for FP3 and qualifying. As always, the margins here are very tight [because it’s such a short lap] and we will need to maximise all our potential to be at the front of the midfield pack.”

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Austria Preview - Force India

Sergio Perez
“The circuit in Austria looks simple but in reality it’s quite a difficult lap to get right. There are only a few corners, but each one is a challenge and can easily ruin your lap if you don’t hit your braking point or find the apex. With some long straights it’s important to carry good speed on the corner exits, especially on the exit of turn one, otherwise you lap times will suffer.

“I think everybody loves the beautiful location of the track. When the weather is nice, it’s a fantastic place to go racing. You’re in the hills with the countryside all around you, which is why there are so many elevation changes of the circuit. There is also an off-camber final corner, where you can easily run wide and lose time.”

Esteban Ocon

“Austria is always a fun event. It’s a cool track and very unique because of its layout and the mountains make a very unusual setting. I am looking forward to being there in the hills and the fresh air. The circuit is short and has only eight corners but that makes for a very tight grid. Qualifying is going to be decided by small details and any mistake will make a big difference. It’s not going to be easy.

“Turns 6 and 7 – the double left corners in the middle of the circuit – are my favourite parts of the track. The first left-hander is quite quick and you take the second almost flat out. You need to be brave getting into those corners quickly to get a good line. It’s definitely the most satisfying part of the lap.

“It’s a big weekend for the team – reaching 200 races in Formula One is a milestone. I’m proud to be part of this team’s history. We represent something special on the grid and I think the sport wouldn’t be the same without Force India. Hopefully we can celebrate this occasion with a good result this weekend.”

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French GP - Force India Race Quotes

Force India

Ocon's home race didn't last too long - he was first hit by Grosjean, suffering damage to his car and then collided in style with Gasly, which ended his race. Perez opted to start on the soft tyres and run a long first stint. He was in the points until he began to suffer on the straights, being passed by a number of cars before pulling into the pits and retiring with a suspected power unit issue.

Sergio Perez, DNF
“It’s disappointing to finish the race like this. We had a sudden drop in water pressure and had to retire the car. It’s a shame because we had the opportunity to score a good amount of points and we leave empty-handed instead. I made a good start and kept clear of the incidents. I would have been eighth but Grosjean cut a few corners and got past me. We gave everything to try and get a result, but the luck wasn’t on our side this weekend. We have upgrades coming for Austria and I hope they can make us more competitive for the next few races.”

Esteban Ocon, DNF
“A very disappointing day. I made a good start and got alongside Romain [Grosjean] down the pit straight before he made contact with me. I was on the edge of the track but he moved over and hit me, which caused a lot of damage to the side of my car and the floor. After that, Pierre [Gasly] lost it under braking in turn three and hit me from behind, which ended my race completely. I feel very sad right now because I have been looking forward to racing in front of my home crowd for such a long time and it only lasted three corners. The fans here have been amazing all weekend so I have to say a big ‘thank you’ for all the positive energy they have given me.”

Otmar Szafnauer, Chief Operating Officer
“It’s not really been our weekend and seeing both cars retire from the race concludes a disappointing French Grand Prix. Esteban’s race was very short and he was simply the innocent victim of other drivers’ mistakes. The hit from Grosjean on the pit straight was totally unnecessary and unexpected, and caused significant damage to the floor of the car. Then being hit by Gasly caused even more damage and put Esteban out on the spot. Sergio escaped most of the opening lap carnage and was fighting for points until there was a rapid water pressure drop, which ended his race. We are still investigating the root cause of this issue.”

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French GP - Qualifying , Force India Quotes

After a poor day yesterday, Force India were looking to bounce back but just didn't have the pace to compete with their midfield rivals. Both cars dropped out in Q2, but at least have the consolation of free tyre choice. With Ocon 11th and Perez 13th, points certainly aren't out of the equation tomorrow.

Sergio Perez, 13th, 1:32.454
“I don’t feel we maximised the qualifying today. We could have been much further up the grid. I think we were unlucky with the conditions because we were expecting more rain towards the end of Q2. I went out too early and did my laps, and then the track improved. We need to see what happens with the weather tomorrow because if it’s wet it will open up some opportunities. The track is very tricky in the wet, but it can also dry very quickly, just as we saw today.


Esteban Ocon, 11th, 1:32.075
“I am a bit disappointed to miss out on the top ten by such a small margin [0.02s], but I am happy about my lap and how we came back as a team from a difficult Friday. We came into qualifying a bit blind after missing track time yesterday, but we were able to improve the car a lot and found a good balance. P11 is the next best thing to a place in Q3 and at least we will have free choice of tyres. Hopefully it’s going to be very hot tomorrow and the strategy can play in our hands, or perhaps it’s going to rain – I’d welcome anything that can mix things up. I have to thank the fans for all their support. I could see them with their flags and it was a special feeling to drive in front of my home crowd.”

Otmar Szafnauer, Chief Operating Officer
“Today’s result is not a huge surprise considering the lack of track time we’ve experienced in the lead up to qualifying. It’s disappointing not to have made it through to Q3, but P11 and P13 give us the freedom to choose our tyres for the start of the race. The light rain at the start of Q2 certainly complicated the session and there’s a good chance of more rain showers affecting the race tomorrow. We didn’t do a huge amount of race simulation on Friday, but our race pace is usually one of our strengths and we will be targeting points tomorrow with both cars.”

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French GP - Practice - Force India Quotes

Force India flirted with the top ten in first practice but things unravelled literally in the second session. Perez was fitted with ultrasoft tyres, and was pushing on when one wheel detached, sending the Mexican into a spin and the red flags flying. The team sensibly kept Ocon in the garage afterwards to investigate, but sent both drivers out in the closing stages. It was too late for them to make an impact on the timing sheet so it remains to be seen where they are in the pecking order.
 
Sergio Perez - FP1: 1:33.719, P9; FP2: 1:36.080, P19
“It was not the easiest Friday for us. Unfortunately we lost a lot of time this afternoon with the issue I had on my car. We lost a bit of track time in the morning so we are missing some information ahead of the race, especially on the tyres. However, we still have some practice tomorrow so we will see what we can do. Despite these problems, I like the new circuit. I wasn’t very positive about it until today, but now that I drove it for the first time I quite like it. The wind is a big issue: it changed between the two sessions and it took a lot of time to get used to it. I had a couple of moments on my soft runs, but I wasn’t the only one. It’s hard to tell where we stand but our target for tomorrow is definitely to be up there fighting to be best of the rest.”

Esteban Ocon - FP1: 1:34.484, P12; FP2: 1:35.705, P16
“Driving a Formula One car at home felt very special. I have been looking forward to this moment for a long time and I really enjoyed those first few laps. Unfortunately it wasn’t the smoothest day for us. I lost about 20 minutes of track time in first practice because I flat-spotted my tyres. Then, in second practice, we had to understand what happened to Sergio’s car before I could go back out. There is quite a lot of work to be done before I can say I am happy with the car. On a new track you need as many laps as possible and we suffered a bit today. We need to try and make up for the lost time and find a good direction for tomorrow.”

Otmar Szafnauer, Chief Operating Officer
“It wasn’t the most straightforward day. The conditions were tricky with a strong wind that changed direction between FP1 and FP2, making it hard for the drivers to adapt. We lost some track time in both sessions, in particular in the afternoon when an issue on Sergio’s car cost us time with both cars while we investigated and fixed the problem. There appeared to have been an issue with the bolt. Sergio didn’t get any long runs done and neither of the drivers posted representative times in second practice. We have left ourselves with plenty of work to do so we will work hard to try and play catch up tonight.”

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French GP - Preview Force India

Sergio Perez "It was disappointing not to score points in the last two races. We had the speed but I’ve just been unlucky. With three races over the next three weeks there should be a chance to make up for the missed opportunities. I want to turn our speed into solid points. I think we now have a car that can race for points at most circuits. We’ve made some progress recently and I’ve always said this team is very good at developing a car during the season.

“There is always something special about going to a new Grand Prix. It’s a nice change because it’s a different challenge and you don’t know what to expect. I have been to Paul Ricard before for testing back in my F3 and GP2 days, but I’ve never raced there. I remember it was a fantastic venue and it’s very wide open with lots of run-off areas. I’ve been watching some videos of the track recently to remind myself of the layout. It’s certainly going to be a quick lap where top speed will be important. I think we will be competitive.

Esteban Ocon
"It’s been my dream for years to be racing in front of my home crowd and now I will finally experience the fantastic feeling of a home Grand Prix. When the race was announced, it was the best news from the whole of last year and I’m really looking forward to it. I am very proud of the work of all the people involved in bringing the French Grand Prix back and I hope the event will be a success.

“I did race at Paul Ricard early in my career – it was actually where I had my first victory in single seaters in 2013 so I have some fantastic memories of the place. I hope we can add some more success this weekend. Having been there in the junior categories makes getting used to a new track in a Formula One car much easier. I think I will find my rhythm quite quickly.

“In the last few races in Monaco and Canada we’ve been showing good pace so I hope we can be strong in France as well. On paper, the track should suit us, with a long straight and some slow corners where we can use our car’s mechanical grip really well. It’s a track which will be new for everyone and we’re usually good at finding a set-up quickly, so I’m not too worried.

“It’s going to be a busy week for me but once I get in the car, it’s like any other race weekend and the focus needs to be on the track.”

Vijay Mallya, Team Principal
"After a third of the 2018 season, it’s encouraging to see the progress we have made since Melbourne. We are reaching Q3 regularly with both cars and picking up good points. There have been lost opportunities and we should have scored many more points, but it feels like our season is properly up and running.
"It’s great to see Formula 1 returning to France. The sport needs its traditional European races and it’s going to be a big weekend for Esteban racing on home ground for the first time.”

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Canadian GP - Race Force India Quotes

Not quite the result they were hoping for but Force India did well to recover some points in a topsy-turvy race. Perez was compromised after colliding with Sainz at the Safety Car re-start, running wide and pitting as a result which dropped him to the back of the field. Ocon had a slow pit stop, and lost places to the Renaults as a result, but aided by Alonso's retirement he came home ninth.
 
Sergio Perez, 14th
“I am very disappointed to come away from this race with no points. The start was good, although I didn’t make up any places, but the restart after the Safety Car was even better and I managed to pass Carlos [Sainz]. I was very surprised when he hit me because I gave him more than enough room and I was ahead: that wasn’t good enough and that’s why I asked for a penalty on the radio. I was able to save the car [from crashing] but by then my race was compromised. We tried something different with the strategy – going for a two-stopper – but it wasn’t enough to get back in the points. Overtaking was impossible, with these cars you can’t follow another car and pass them unless you have a big advantage. It’s a shame because I feel we had the pace to be mixing with the Renaults and we should have scored some good points.”

Esteban Ocon, 9th
“It’s good to pick up more points, but we had the potential to score even more today. I had a fantastic first lap and got ahead of Hulkenberg, which was the target, and I was running well in seventh place. Then we had a small issue at the pit stop, which cost us a couple of seconds, and it dropped me down behind both of the Renaults. From there I tried my best to fight back and I came close to catching Sainz in the final few laps, but it wasn’t possible to overtake, especially after he cut the track and gained some time on the final lap when I was about to overtake him. It’s a shame because the strategy should have worked really well. I will focus on the positives because it’s been a strong performance by the team this weekend. We can be satisfied with what we have done here. The pace has been competitive, but we need to keep pushing.”


Otmar Szafnauer, Chief Operating Officer
“To come away with just two points is a bit disappointing considering the speed we’ve shown across the weekend. Esteban drove well and we just unfortunately had a slow pit stop with a delay fitting the rear jack, which ultimately ended our chance of beating the Renaults. Sergio was racing very well until Sainz hit him, forcing him off the road, and dropped him outside the points. He had made the overtake so it was extremely disappointing to lose four or five places as a result. It effectively ended his afternoon. So a mixed result today, but we take encouragement from the speed we have shown in both qualifying and the race, and it’s good to keep picking up important points.”

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