Force India will still let its drivers Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon fight between each other, team principal Vijay Mallya said.
“Montreal showed the strengths of our driver line-up. Sergio and Esteban are very closely-matched and they are pushing each other hard on the track. They both want to beat each other and this healthy competition will help drive us forward. They will get the best out of each other. We will continue to allow them to race freely, but we will always balance this with the best interests of the team. You can’t pre-plan these things and every situation will be different”, Mallya explained.
His comment comes on the eve of the Azerbaijan Grand prix after there was some tension during the previous race in Canada. Then Perez categorically declined a request to let his teammate pass him.
“There is a lot of optimism ahead of this weekend”, Mallya continued.
“Last year Baku turned out to be a good race for the team and we believe we can deliver another strong performance this year. The progress we’ve made with the VJM10 since the start of the season has been considerable and we have brought developments to the car at every race so far. All the hard work is paying off and I’m proud of our results.”
Force India will still let its drivers Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon fight between each other
Perez pointed out that he is pleased with the team’s decision to let him and Ocon race each other.
“There were a lot of things said after Montreal and lots of different opinions. But I’m pleased the team decided to let us race without team orders. I will always fight for the best result for the team and I’m proud of our race”, the Mexican driver commented.
“There were discussions on the radio about switching positions with Esteban. My pace was good and I was running close to Daniel [Ricciardo] for almost 50 laps. I knew my best chance to overtake was during the lapped traffic and I got very close, but we didn’t have the pace advantage to make the move.”
“The memories from last year’s race in Baku are still very strong. We had great pace and I loved the track layout. To recover from a gearbox penalty and still finish on the podium was a very special feeling. It was definitely one of my best weekends in Formula One. If we can find the sweet spot again this year I think we can fight for some big points.”
“It felt great to be in the battle for a podium and to see how competitive we are as a team”, Ocon added
“It feels like we’ve got a really good understanding of how to get the most from this car. It’s another new track for me. But I’ll keep trying to learn as fast as possible and I’m sure I can get on the pace quickly. I’ve been playing some computer games to learn the track so I’ve done my homework.”
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