'Damage limitation' against Williams for Force India at Monza

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Force India will be looking to limit the damage against Williams at this weekend's Italian Grand Prix at Monza, according to Bob Fernley.

An impressive performance at the Belgian Grand Prix saw Force India secure 22 points after finishing fourth and fifth with Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez respectively, overhauling Williams for fourth place in the constructors' championship in the process.

Fernley described the result as "a remarkable turnaround" at a circuit he expected Williams to be strong, but he says Monza should be even more favourable to Force India's rivals.

“Damage limitation and defending are probably the same thing as far as we’re concerned, so I think the answer is same again," Fernley told F1i when asked about the team's hopes for Monza. "We look to do minimal damage and we look to take opportunities if they arrive.

“It's a slightly different circuit again though, and it benefits that slippery car that Williams have. I think we’re going to take each one as it comes. We’ve done one and it’s gone better than we ever thought it would do so it could easily switch round at the next one. Until things settle down it’s very difficult, it’s going to ebb and flow to the end of the season.”

And Fernley insists Force India will not change its approach at all despite now being ahead in the race for fourth place.

“No, as far as we’re concerned we’re flat out all the time. I think that’s the difference possibly between us, if there’s one thing Force India isn’t it’s conservative!

“I think we’re prepared to take the risks when necessary, and in many cases it pays off. Occasionally we drop off but I think we win more than we lose.”

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.