Singapore, Sep 17 (IANS) Force India driver Adrian Sutil said Tuesday that they need to qualify well at the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix to be held Sunday to have a better chance of bagging points.
“We’ve got to qualify well to give ourselves the best chance of scoring points. We are still close to McLaren in the championship and we need to make sure we keep a healthy margin ahead of Toro Rosso and Sauber,” said Sutil, who will race in his fifth Singapore GP.
Not his favourite hunting ground, but the German has begun to like the Marina Bay Street Circuit over the years.
“It’s not my favourite track but it’s one of those places that I’ve come to like more and more. There are some nice sections and it’s quite wide for a street circuit, which helps with overtaking. I always enjoy street races and the city is amazing. The atmosphere means it’s definitely one of the best races of the year,” added the 30-year-old, who finished eighth the last time he raced here in 2011.
Sutil’s teammate Paul di Resta had a fantastic outing last year when he finished fourth. However, the Briton believes it is going to be tough to repeat that performance.
“Given our form lately it’s difficult to know what to expect. We had a great result last year with fourth place. It would be great to try and repeat that but it’s going to be tough given how competitive the grid is at the moment,” the 27-year-old said.
“There’s no doubt that the tyre change had an impact on things. Plus, a lot of the teams have caught up with us for whatever reason, whether it’s updates or the nature of the tracks. All we can do is keep working away to try and find some more performance,” added the Scot.