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Adrian aims for more points in Monaco
Adrian, you finished seventh in Spain, behind only cars from the 'big four' teams. How did the race go for you?
Overall it was a very positive race weekend. I made a great start and had a good first lap. I was in P8 straight away. It looked quite easy, but it wasn't! I had a lot of pressure over 40 laps from Robert Kubica. He was behind all the time and pushing me around the circuit all the way. I would push sometimes, and make a little gap, and then he would come back again. There wasn't any time to relax as we had very similar lap times and a very similar performance throughout the race. I'm glad I was able to stay in front of him and could defend my position. We're close to Renault, and I think it's a great achievement to beat them in the race. Then I was lucky with two laps to go when Lewis [Hamilton] went off, and I gained another position. P7 really is the maximum from the weekend for us and I'm very happy to get some more points on the board.
Lots of teams brought new parts to Spain, but Force India had a relatively modest package and still made progress. Is there more in the pipeline?
We brought some aero and mechanical parts to Spain and it was a reasonable step, but we've had bigger steps before. For Monaco we have another package, and that should help us a lot. I can't wait to get there: I like the circuit, and I've kind of had good results there. Kind of, I'm saying! I remember in 2008 with the accident with Kimi being very close to a great finish, but it didn't happen. This year is a very different situation. I have a good car, and it doesn't matter which weather is around. If we have a good qualifying there, which is very important, a couple of points are possible there, or even more.
As you say you have a much stronger starting point than the last few years, when you were still able to make an impression. Can you aim to qualify and finish in the top six, for example?
I think in Monaco, as always, everything is possible. You never know what will happen. The race is long, and a lot of mistakes can be made. You just need to stay concentrated and focussed all the way through, and then you can have a good result. That's our main goal. I think for us every circuit - it doesn't matter where - we want to score points. And that's what I want.
You suggested you don't need rain - but it won't hurt you, will it?
No it's not going to hurt me. I like it, especially there. I know how to drive around a street circuit in the wet, although it's tricky. You need a little bit of luck to make it all right, and 2008 was one of those races when everything went right - our pit stop was at the right time when it dried out. It all counts towards getting a good result. I'm confident in our abilities as a team to make the right judgements.
Overall it was a very positive race weekend. I made a great start and had a good first lap. I was in P8 straight away. It looked quite easy, but it wasn't! I had a lot of pressure over 40 laps from Robert Kubica. He was behind all the time and pushing me around the circuit all the way. I would push sometimes, and make a little gap, and then he would come back again. There wasn't any time to relax as we had very similar lap times and a very similar performance throughout the race. I'm glad I was able to stay in front of him and could defend my position. We're close to Renault, and I think it's a great achievement to beat them in the race. Then I was lucky with two laps to go when Lewis [Hamilton] went off, and I gained another position. P7 really is the maximum from the weekend for us and I'm very happy to get some more points on the board.
Lots of teams brought new parts to Spain, but Force India had a relatively modest package and still made progress. Is there more in the pipeline?
We brought some aero and mechanical parts to Spain and it was a reasonable step, but we've had bigger steps before. For Monaco we have another package, and that should help us a lot. I can't wait to get there: I like the circuit, and I've kind of had good results there. Kind of, I'm saying! I remember in 2008 with the accident with Kimi being very close to a great finish, but it didn't happen. This year is a very different situation. I have a good car, and it doesn't matter which weather is around. If we have a good qualifying there, which is very important, a couple of points are possible there, or even more.
As you say you have a much stronger starting point than the last few years, when you were still able to make an impression. Can you aim to qualify and finish in the top six, for example?
I think in Monaco, as always, everything is possible. You never know what will happen. The race is long, and a lot of mistakes can be made. You just need to stay concentrated and focussed all the way through, and then you can have a good result. That's our main goal. I think for us every circuit - it doesn't matter where - we want to score points. And that's what I want.
You suggested you don't need rain - but it won't hurt you, will it?
No it's not going to hurt me. I like it, especially there. I know how to drive around a street circuit in the wet, although it's tricky. You need a little bit of luck to make it all right, and 2008 was one of those races when everything went right - our pit stop was at the right time when it dried out. It all counts towards getting a good result. I'm confident in our abilities as a team to make the right judgements.
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