Paul di Resta is hoping Force India can remain ahead of McLaren in the coming races, but admitted after that, it would be hard considering the Woking outfit’s development capabilities.
Force India have looked the surprise package of 2013 so far, with Adrian Sutil and Di Resta finishing 7th and 8th respectively in Australia, effectively putting them at the head of the midfield.
They also looked set for solid points scoring positions in Malaysia had it not been for a wheel nut issue which saw them both retire on safety grounds.
The Scot is confident they can continue to challenge McLaren in China and Bahrain.
“We’ve proven where we are at the moment, but whether we will be in that position after the next two will be hard,” he told Sky Sports.
“I’ve a lot of respect for what McLaren do. Although they are struggling at the moment, they can develop.
“But we will be pushing to stay in front of them. Our performance so far has been far better than people expected, far better than people could probably overhaul in two weeks.”
He expects further gains in a fortnight despite their Malaysian troubles.
“Despite what happened in Malaysia we took very good positives from the weekend through our performance, so I’m looking forward to China and Bahrain,” he added.
“I’d like to think we’d have some more knowledge on our car to make it quicker.”