Hungarian GP - Force India Ferrari - PreviewFollowing a competitive double finish at last week's German Grand Prix and a productive three-day test last week in Jerez, Spain, the Force India Formula One Team now turns its attention to the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The
team tested the new seamless-shift gearbox at Jerez last week, but despite completing 1000km over the four day group test, have opted not to race the new unit this coming weekend.
Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer
Will you be using the seamless shift gearbox in Hungary at all?
"We had a very successful introduction of the seamless shift gearbox at the test last week in Jerez, with very positive comments from the drivers, and obviously we would like to introduce it as soon as possible. We do however need to accrue more mileage before racing it, but we will run it on the Friday in Hungary. As both gearboxes are three races into their four race cycle, we will use it on the Friday, but we'll race the standard box with the view to introducing the seamless version in Valencia. This solution is therefore a chance to gain more mileage without incurring the penalties of changing a box with one race left, and to make sure we are fully prepared for a race introduction after the summer break."
In Hungary, getting a good qualifying position is crucial, but it seems to be the team's Achilles Heel. What is your feeling on this?
"We have struggled in qualifying compared to our race pace, and Hungary is a place where overtaking is very difficult so qualifying is even more important than usual.
But let's not forget that we had a very competitive outing in Monaco, which is very similar in set-up to Hungary with maximum downforce and few overtaking opportunities, so we have to look to do this again; have a good strategy and take advantage whenever we can."
How would you review the team's performance in Germany?
"Germany was disappointing in Qualifying, as with both cars we didn't feel like we got the best out of them, but again our race pace was comparatively much better and we were able to race competitively with several of the cars in front. We now have to look to maintain that in Hungary, and hopefully with the introduction of the seamless shift in Valencia, we can move on and certainly be racing with more cars in the midfield."
Colin Kolles, Team Principal
What will the aims for Hungary be this week?
"We're under no illusions though that this race will be difficult - we've not performed well in qualifying so far and, with few places to pass on the Hungaroring, it could be a very hard race for us to make up positions if we don't qualify well. So we have to look to the strategy to help us, and try and make the most of qualifying to give ourselves the best possible chances. We need then to have good reliability to get two cars to the finish."
As recent races have shown, Adrian and Giancarlo are now very closely matched for speed. Is this on a par with your expectations?
"When we signed Giancarlo we knew he would push Adrian to his limits, and this is exactly what has happened. Adrian needed a good benchmark to develop his potential, and now he has one he's pushing himself a lot harder. Giancarlo has had a couple of difficult events with the balance of the car, but he's been a very positive influence on the team, not just with Adrian, but on everyone - engineers, mechanics and everyone back at the factory - to get the best out of the car so he can really shine."
Adrian Sutil
"Budapest is a great city, with so many interesting places to see and so much history. The Hungaroring itself is actually a very slow circuit and the race is very tough due to the high ambient temperatures and it's also a difficult track to overtake on, so you have to concentrate on your own race and the strategy, and try to get as good a qualifying position as you can. I've only driven it once in my career, but the 2007 race was good as we showed we were quite competitive with the cars in front of us. We could race Honda, which meant I really had to push and attack every single lap."
"This year we have been very close to the other teams, but F1 is so competitive now that just two tenths is the difference between the back row and the midfield. You just can't afford to make any mistakes any more."
Giancarlo Fisichella"I scored my first points in Formula One at the Hungaroring, so for sure this is a really great memory of the event. It's very twisty and challenging, but if you have a good rhythm, it can be a lot of fun. It's always been a circuit where qualifying is important as it's just about impossible to pass on this track. Let's wait and see how the combination of the new aero package helps us this time out."
Force India
