Force India Race Preview - Monza

Its been almost a week since Force India bounced back (like a Panther) at Spa. Sitting only one point behind Sauber, despite having had all their points stripped over the break, the team will be keen to continue their run of form at Monza.

The Mercedes-AMG power unit has traditionally fared well at Monza, a simple track with long straights and fast corners, but Ferrari’s show of speed at Spa will be a welcome relief for the thousands of Italian fans who will be out in force to support their home team after decades of disappointment.

Force India did well in qualifying and picked up some points here last year, so the team seems confident that they can do it again this year under the “Racing Point” brand. We caught up with Force India’s Drivers’ Eye to find out what Checo and Esteban had to say:

“I’m feeling really positive after such a strong weekend in Spa,” Checo told them. “The points we scored are very important and our performance across the entire weekend shows what a great group of people we have in this team. The car was quick and I was happy with our race pace.

“I know we have new parts coming to the car and there is a feeling of excitement in the team. It’s going to be interesting to see how competitive we can be in Monza and whether we can continue with the speed we showed in Spa.”

“Racing in Monza is something special because you can feel the huge love the locals have for motorsport,” Esteban added. “The atmosphere from the Tifosi is incredible – for all the drivers. The track is only made up of 11 corners, but there are a lot of places that can catch you out. Parabolica is a really quick corner and it’s very difficult to get it just right. The same is true of the Lesmo corners.

“The Variante Ascari is also very nice to drive – you are almost flat out and need to be very precise. We achieve some incredible speeds along the straights and I think the layout is going to suit our package. Last year I had a special race there: I was third on the grid and finished sixth, so I hope we can be in the points again this year.”

With everything looking up, we're exited to see what our Techical Partners can achieve at Spa. Hope you enjoy the race!