First double finish for Force India
The Force India Formula One Team has achieved its first double finish of the season at today's Bahrain Grand Prix. Giancarlo Fisichella drove a strong race to finish a fighting 12th position while Adrian Sutil brought the second VJM01 home in 19th position after a collision on the first lap dropped him one lap behind the leaders. The German nevertheless put in a measured and consistent drive to secure his first finish of the year.
Giancarlo made a fantastic start and was in 11th place by the third lap. For the second consecutive race he fought with the Honda of Rubens Barrichello, keeping him at bay until his first stop on lap 22. Unfortunately Giancarlo rejoined behind Barrichello, but fought hard to keep in touch with the Brazilian until the closing stages of the race to finish a encouraging 12th position, six places up on his starting position, the best improvement of any driver in the field.
The team will now return briefly to its Silverstone base before heading out to Barcelona for a three-day test prior to the Spanish Grand Prix. The test will take place from 14 - 16 April, with Tonio Liuzzi driving the first day, Giancarlo the second and Adrian bringing the test to a close.
Adrian Sutil: "An unlucky race for us. After quite a good start I had an accident in the first corner and lost my front wing and punctured my left tyre so I had to go into the pits. I managed to get back and change the nose and tyres so at least I could do a race distance. The race turned out quite OK without major incidents. The car felt much better but I had some problems with the radio so I came into too early for my second pit stop. The race was a bit messy from that point of view, but at least I could finish and collect some information for the next race."
Giancarlo Fisichella: "I had a good start and I overtook some cars in turn one and then some more when some cars spun in turn seven. Our pace was consistent so I had a good race. In the middle stint there were some problems with the soft tyres and they did not seem to work as well as they could have, but at the end of the race the hard tyres were working well and I was comfortable. I am really happy about my race, the team has done a good job so far and we just need to improve the car a little bit more and then we will be there."
Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer: "A great race for the team and good to be racing again. Adrian's race was unfortunately compromised at the start when he lost his nose. Although we turned him around pretty quickly, he came out just in front of the pack, which meant he lost a lot of time with the blue flags. When he was on his own he was able to drive consistently and quickly and it is encouraging to see him get his first finish of the year. Giancarlo had a storming race and made up a lot of positions on the opening lap. It was a shame to lose out on the pit stops to Barrichello and then to get lapped just before the end, but apart from that it is promising for the team to finally be racing again. Well done to all who have worked hard to get this far."
Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman and managing director: "I am smiling after this race as we again stepped up our game here in Bahrain. We have performed well this weekend, with Giancarlo and Adrian just missing out on Q2 again by the smallest of margins and featuring well in practice. We have then achieved a double finish and were once more fighting for positions. Adrian was unlucky that his race was compromised at the first corner and he lost a lap, but he drove very well with an encouraging pace and secured his first finish of the year. He can use this as the start of his season and can move forward again in Spain. I was delighted with Giancarlo's race pace and proud to see a Force India again fighting with well-established and experienced teams and drivers. Going into the European season now we have a very strong foundation."
