Force India: Lack of pace prevented Budapest recovery

The Indian outfit was caught out by a wet but drying Hungaroring on Saturday, with neither Esteban Ocon nor Sergio Perez able to escape Q1.

Ocon and Perez tried different strategies but failed to make enough progress in the 70-lap race, finishing 13th and 14th respectively and a lap down on the leaders.

“A difficult race for us and we knew it was going to be a big challenge to score points today. The start of the race was strong and we made up a few positions, but we didn’t have enough pace to recover from the back of the grid and fight for points” Ocon said.

“I enjoyed some good battles with the Renaults, but the problems in qualifying yesterday really determined our result today.”

Perez added: “It hasn’t been an ideal day for us, but we knew it was going to be a tough Sunday all along. We started from the back and chose to go with an aggressive strategy, but in the end we just didn’t have the pace to make it work.

“I had a good start but lost some places after touching with Leclerc and after that it was always going to be difficult to recover on a circuit where overtaking is very difficult. I am glad we have the summer break now.”

Force India is currently under administration as it seeks a new buyer to pay off existing debt and steer the team to new heights.

Several parties have shown interest in purchasing the Silverstone-based outfit, including the billionaire father of Williams F1 driver Lance Stroll.

Although administrations have stated that they are working on an “urgent basis” to secure the future of the team, it remains unclear when a resolution could be achieved.

“The summer break gives us a chance to regroup, deal with the issues that are taking place away from the track and come back for the second part of the season in a much stronger position,” Force India COO Otmar Szafnauer said.

“We are confident in the work we are doing back at the factory and we are still in the thick of the action when it comes to the midfield battle, so we can look forward to recharging the batteries once this week’s test is over.”