Force India doesn’t expect to make major strides forward until Formula 1 returns to Europe later in the season, according to team principal Vijay Mallya.
The Silverstone outfit was forced to delay its VJM08 until the final pre-season test due to financial troubles. Whilst it has run without major issue since, completing over 300 laps in Barcelona and taking sixth and tenth in Australia, the team know there’s much work to be done.
“Despite scoring well in Melbourne, we know the VJM08 is only just beginning its development journey and that we need to add performance if we want to finish consistently in the points,” Mallya said.
“There will be some small tweaks this weekend before bigger steps can be made during the European season.”
Looking to Malaysia, Mallya is hopeful of another double points finish: “Malaysia is an interesting track for us. We had a good race there last year with Nico [Hulkenberg] and it’s a track that generates good racing.
“The hot weather usually plays to our strengths and the risk of rain can add another dimension to the strategy. Hopefully we can capitalise on these elements to be competitive and come away with another strong result.”
Meanwhile Hulkenberg says he’s not getting carried away with his strong finish in Melbourne and knows the team must push forward to ensure it isn’t just a one-off.
“We knew the VJM08’s reliability was one of our strong points and we were able to play that card well,” he added. “We didn’t make any mistakes and we had a good strategy, and that helped us capitalise on a day when others ran into trouble.
“We need to keep our feet on the ground, however, because we know the circumstances in which we got this result and we know the next races will be tough.”
