Fernley says Force India hitting targets with regular points
Force India is matching its target of getting both cars in the points at every race before an update package at the Spanish GP allows the team to raise its sights.
That’s the view of deputy team principal Bob Fernley, who says that the Silverstone team will make a step forward in performance terms. He believes that consistent scoring in the opening races – in effect a form of damage limitation before the upgrades come on stream – will give the team a good base.
“We’re on target with where we want to be,” he said. “We’ve got two of the four races down where we feel we need to manage our position rather than going out for the straight competition side of it, and I think we’re in good shape.
“From Spain onward we’ll start to push harder. The first four races have always been a case of making sure we’re good with race craft, reliability and strategy. Fundamentally, we’ve delivered on that so far.”
Fernley admitted that Shanghai had been a difficult race, with Sergio Perez surviving a first lap collision with Lance Stroll and subsequent puncture, and Ocon losing time with a “phantom” pit stop, when he drove straight out as the team wasn’t expecting him.
“To bring two cars into the points from where we started, certainly with one of them, was a great achievement. Unlike Melbourne, where I think we optimized, we left a little bit on the table. There were a couple of opportunities.
“I think we need to look at that, because it was a very difficult race to manage, and very challenging – just the safety cars coming out, and obviously the conditions. Esteban came in a little bit earlier than he probably should have done, that’s what we’ve got to look at.”
Meanwhile, Perez made the points for the 12th race in a row in Shanghai, but the Mexican acknowledged that Force India struggled for pace, ultimately losing out to both Carlos Sainz’s Toro Rosso and Kevin Magnussen’s Haas.
Perez was lucky to recover from a first lap puncture after a contact with Lance Stroll, helped by the fact that the virtual safety car came out. He went on to finish ninth, believing that was the best he could do on the day.
“It feels great to pretty much maximize the result,” said the Mexican. “I think we have to look at the strategy, but I think we simply lacked pace, a lot of pace, when we see how the Haas came through, how far we were in front, the Toro Rosso. Even the McLaren [Fernando Alonso], it was very difficult in the beginning when they were on the soft tires in the damp conditions, I was on the supersofts, and I managed to close the gap a lot. After that everything was pretty much stable, and I struggled for pace.
“In China I think you can overtake, it’s a lot more difficult than in the past, but I think Shanghai is a place where car pace merits a lot more than track position, it’s not like Melbourne position is so crucial and important. Here the overtaking is really a lot easier than Melbourne, so I think where we finished in terms of car pace.
“There are a couple of things that always afterwards you can take better decisions, but I think we did the most we could. It’s our 12th consecutive race in the points, so I think we’ve been doing a tremendous job.”
Perez insisted that Stroll didn’t give him enough room when the pair made contact.
“It wasn’t a straightforward start, a really poor start. As soon as I dropped the clutch I went into a massive wheel spin, I lost I think five places before I got onto Turn One. Then I managed to recover a couple during lap one. Then we had the contact with Stroll. I think he didn’t give me any space through the corner, and we made contact. I had a puncture, but luckily we had the virtual safety car, which helped me a lot.
“It was tough out there you know, it was not an easy race. But I think we did the most we could. We switched to the slick tire at the right point.”
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