Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsForce India

Force India potential intact, says Perez

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Despite a rather low key start to its 2016 campaign, Force India's outlook for the remainder of the year remains very positive, according to Sergio Perez.

The Mexican himself has yet to score points this season and lamented the team's poor showing in Bahrain, a track theoretically well-suited for Force India's VJM09, but he remains optimistic his car will soon show its true pace.

"The car right now is not at its best compared to our competition, and Bahrain wasn't so strong and its one of our strongest circuits" Perez said.

"We had a poor weekend but those weekends are the ones when you learn the most. We are understanding better and better the car, so we're quite optimistic regarding the impact of the upgrades that will be coming throughout the year."

Perez also admitted that this year's new tyre rules and their understanding by Force India's engineers has introduced some variation which he hopes he can profit from.

"Sometimes you may get the strategy right and sometimes you may get it wrong, as was our case in Bahrain. But in general we should try to benefit from those rules.

With the change in qualifying here in China, you now get a free choice if you're P11 which isn't so good compared to before when you were P9."

Force India finished last year on a high and Perez believes it's just a matter of time before the outfit retrieves that specific form.

"We shouldn't be in this position right now as we've been really unlucky. We're not at the level we expected.

We're really optimistic about the upgrades and we're really focusing and putting a lot of effort into that. So I hope that will bring us to the next level."

Chris Medland's 2016 Chinese Grand Prix preview

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.