Yeongam: Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta had a bad day in office as Sahara Force India returned pointless from the incident-filled Korean Grand Prix here Sunday. While Di Resta dropped out after a carsh on the 25th lap, his teammate Sutil had stopped in the pits on the 50th lap.
Not much was expected from the Silverstone-based oufit in the race after Sutil and Di Resta started at 14th and 15th positions on the grid after poor performance in yesterday's qualifying session. Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel finds himself on the brink of a fourth successive world title after claiming his fourth consecutive win this year in an action-packed race, which was marred by two safety car appearances.
The 26-year-old German has a chance of retaining the title in Japan next week if he wins and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso finishes outside the top eight. Lotus' duo of Kimi Raikkonen Romain Grosjean finished second and third respectively. Sutil had to retire in the 25th lap following an accident with McLaren's Sergio Perez, who under investigation for forcing the Briton off track.
Sutil, on the other hand, spun at Turn 3 and hit Mark Webber's Red Bull which caught fire, forcing the safety car to be deployed for the second time on lap 38. Sutil, however, continued to race for 12 more laps before deciding to retire in the 50th lap.
Force India's disappointing show at the Korean GP has increased it's gap with McLaren to 19 points in the championship table after Jenson Button and Perez added five points to their team's tally with eighth and 10th place finishes rspectively. "I was quite unlucky on the first lap because after Massa spun everybody headed for the inside and somebody hit me on the side of my front wing. The damage was not too bad but I still had to pit for a new one," said Sutil about his race.
Di Resta too was disappointed with the early end to his race. "I have to hold my hands up and apologise to the team. Maybe I took a little bit too much kerb and that's sent me off the track. The way we've set the car up means it has been quite edgy and difficult to drive, and that's what has caught me out today, although whether it has cost us points is hard to say.
"The performance in the race was not where we wanted it to be. So we need to have a rethink ahead of Suzuka and go there determined to have a clean race," he said. Force India's Deputy Team Principal, Robert Fernley added:"It was not the easiest day in the office for anyone at Sahara Force India and we leave Korea feeling disappointed.
Paul was pushing hard after his second stop and just made a small mistake at turn 12. It was a fairly gentle tap against the barrier, but it was enough to damage the right rear corner and end his race.
"Adrian also had an eventful time, being a victim of the opening lap incident at turn three. Pitting early for a new wing dropped him to the back of the pack, but he battled back and was in contention for some points. Unfortunately the damage to his rear wing led to his eventual retirement. After a tough race like that it's important we try and bounce back in Japan next week," he said.
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