New Delhi: Sahara Force India drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Paul di Resta on Monday said they will try to make their home Grand Prix "special" with a big result and won't "give up" on the sixth place in the championship for which they are fighting hard with Sauber.
With four races to go, starting with Sunday's Indian Grand Prix, the Indian outfit is placed seventh currently, trailing the Swiss team Sauber by 27 points. "Since this one is home Grand Prix, a big result would be very welcome. We will try to make it special," Hulkenberg said. "Focus never changes, as a team we want both the cars with points," said Paul di Resta.
At this stage of the season so far, Force India have fared better on points compared to the last season but the mid-field has been very competitive with Sauber coming up very strong. Sauber can even dislodge Mercedes from the fifth position. Hulkenberg, who is expected to move to Sauber in the next season, said Force India still have hopes of grabbing the sixth place. "It's been a good year, we have been fairly consistent compared to the other teams. We have scored quite a few points on different occasions. Personally, I had good result, some strong performances, I missed on podium (in Belgium)," he said.
"On paper we have had better year than last year with more points but our main rivals like Suber have also been very strong. Our target still is to get that sixth place," the German said.
Paul knew that it was easier said than done but was not willing to throw in the towel as yet. "Mathematically, it will be difficult, but obviously we won't give up with four races to go," the Scot said. Force India have 89 points till date, 27 less than Sauber and need consistent good results to go one place up.
Both Hulkenberg and Paul di Resta achieved their career-best results in this season with the German finishing fourth in Belgium and the British driver getting the same result in Singapore. Asked what it takes to bridge that gap from a podium place, Hulkenberg said, "We need little bit more performance." "We have to bring the strength and the pace from ourselves at the end of the day," he added.
At the inaugural edition, it was a full house with close to one lakh people thronging the Buddh International Circuit to watch the Formula One action. Paul di Resta said such overwhelming crowd support is seen only for Ferrari. "Nice to have that kind of support and hope it's bigger. It's a pleasure being part of Force India. Not many teams get that kind of support. Ferrari gets it in Italy," Paul said.
Reflecting upon his debut season in a racing seat in F1, Hulkenberg, who had replaced Adrian Sutil, said, "It was difficult in the first four races. It took some time to get into rhythm and after that, I picked up." The two drivers said the financial crisis that has hit their team's co-owner Vijay Mallya has no bearing on them. "It does not affect. It's different business than F1. No consequences for us. We don't feel that," said the German.
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