Austria 2016 - GP Preview - Force India Mercedes

Q&A with Vijay Mallya

Team Principal, Dr Vijay Mallya, looks forward to the team continuing its strong run of form.

VJM: “Seeing our team on the podium for the second time in less than a month makes me incredibly proud. The result in Baku was achieved completely on merit and everybody in the team deserves credit for helping make these results possible. We are experiencing the best run of form in the team’s history and we are enjoying the moment.

“There has been a lot of talk about the team switching focus to 2017, but this doesn’t mean we won’t be strong for the rest of 2016. There is a lot of performance still to be extracted from our current package and I am confident we can put on a good show in the races to come. Having scored two podiums in three races, we’ve got a taste for success and I would like to see us pick up more silverware before the end of the year.

“The races come thick and fast during July with four races in the space of a month. The next race in Austria is a venue we enjoy and we expect to be competitive once again. It’s a great moment for the team and there is a special atmosphere back at our Silverstone base. We’ve shown that we can give the leading teams a run for their money and that’s a huge motivation for everyone at Force India.”

Sergio on Austria

Sergio Perez aims to follow up his Baku podium with another strong result in Austria.

Sergio: “I am still smiling about the podium we scored in Baku. It was an amazing weekend for us. We got the calls right; we executed our race plan perfectly and we finished in the top three on merit. I feel very proud of my team and I think it was one of my most competitive races in Formula One. It wasn’t a completely smooth weekend with the gearbox penalty pushing us backwards on the grid, but we were able to overcome the difficulties, which made it an even sweeter result.

“I travel to Austria on a high and determined to deliver another strong result. This race is one of my favourites because the track is nice to drive and I enjoy the atmosphere with the fans camping around the circuit. There are lots of elevation changes and some challenging corners: you cannot make mistakes in any of them or it will cost you a lot of time on the straights. It’s also a short lap so the gaps between the cars are always very small and that makes for a very tight grid.

“We’ve made a lot of progress with the car since Barcelona and I expect us to be competitive this weekend. There are a few decent overtaking opportunities, especially the big braking zone at turn two, so there should be some good action in the race.”

Nico on Austria

Nico Hülkenberg previews the ninth round of the championship in Austria.

Nico: “I love racing in Spielberg and it’s a great addition to the calendar. The backdrop to the track, with the Alps, is spectacular, and there is an old school vibe to the circuit, which I enjoy. The atmosphere is very relaxed and lots of German fans make the short trip over the border so it almost feels like a home race for me.

“We look strong coming to Austria but we’re not taking anything for granted. The track is fun and it has a very nice flow, but it can easily catch you out, especially the last few corners, which are quite technical. I had a great race in Austria last year and have a good feeling about this weekend. The car is working well and we’ve taken a big step forward since the start of the year so there is the potential for another good result.”