Force India drivers stop in Q2 at the Sepang circuit

Nico Hülkenberg saw his qualifying session end in Q2, with a 13th place on the grid. The German driver hoped for better but believes that the rain did not have a real impact on the performance of his Force India, which could not have done better even in dry conditions.

Hülkenberg estimates that tomorrow’s race could be complicated with tire management, even though the rain could add a bit of spice: « It was a short qualifying session with the rain arriving at the beginning of Q2. Maybe it would have been better for us if the rain had arrived 5 minutes earlier and Q2 had been completely wet […]. Even with that, I think it would have been difficult to reach Q3 no matter what. Tomorrow’s race will be tough, especially tire management with the high temperatures. »

Sergio Perez struggled, also being eliminated in Q2, but the Mexican is confident for tomorrow as his focus was on the race: « It was really tough on track with these conditions. I was the last car on track in Q2 and that compromised my lap on mediums – our strategy was the right one but we were a bit late and by the time I was in sectors 2 and 3 the track started to get wet. Overall, I think where we are is a fair reflection of our current pace. »

Robert Fernley, deputy team principal, has no criticism for his drivers who, according to him, gave it their all. He is rather optimistic for tomorrow’s race with a goal of scoring points: « It is always a challenge when you have only one lap to set a time in qualifying. That was the case today, and we feel that Sergio and Nico managed to extract everything possible in these conditions. The 13th and 14th positions are generally where we stand in terms of pace over a lap at the moment. We remain positive about our chances of scoring points tomorrow; the midfield is tight, and if we can show the same pace as on Friday, it should be an interesting Sunday afternoon. »