Force India: “Keeping 4th place will be a difficult mission”

Force India got off to a difficult start to the 2018 season as the VJM11s of Sergio Pérez and Esteban Ocon failed outside the points. If the Indian structure is renowned for following an upward progression curve over the year, it is clear that the pink cars were expected to be in better positions.

« Melbourne is still a weird race, recalls operations director Otmar Szafnauer. We were hoping to pick up a point with Sergio coming back on Carlos Sainz, but overtaking was particularly difficult at Albert Park and tenth place remained out of reach. The pace in the race was better than in qualifying, but we were unable to show our true potential due to our positions on the grid. Esteban's front wing was damaged due to some debris early in the race, which notably compromised his performance in the second stint. »

As the future of Vijay Mallya's structure begins to raise questions due to his financial difficulties and legal action against its owner, the Indian team remains focused on its goal.

“Winter testing showed that the gaps have narrowed considerably in the middle of the pack. So there were no big surprises in Melbourne, continues Otmar Szafnauer. The points should be more spread out this year and keeping fourth place will be a difficult mission, but we have only competed in one race and things can quickly change. F1. The race for development is only just beginning and it’s where you are at the end of the season that counts. Last year we overtook our rival teams and we will have to do the same year. Our goal is to defend our fourth place and we will fight tooth and nail to keep it. »

Force India indeed has sustained competition, notably with the progression of Renault Sport F1 Team and Haas F1 Team who was able to play for the Top 5 with his two cars before committing a huge blunder in the pits, condemning the VF-18s of Romain Grosjean et Kevin Magnussen abandonned. Vijay Mallya's men therefore know that they will have to roll up their sleeves to keep up.

“The development of the car is progressing normally during this period. We will have a new front wing in Bahrain (on April 8) which will complete our developments made in Melbourne, confirms Otmar Szafnauer. The car is now completely different from the one we used during winter testing and we are still in a learning phase. We have strong development potential with this new aerodynamic platform and we have things planned in the pipeline that will provide a performance gain in the first quarter of the season. »

Jacques-Armand Dupuis