Force India: Drivers defenceless against DRS attackers

2011 Korean GP team review

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Both Force India drivers lost places on the straight but Di Resta salvaged a point.

Adrian Sutil Paul di Resta
Qualifying position 10 9
Qualifying time comparison (Q2) 1’38.219 (-0.035) 1’38.254
Race position 11 10
Laps 55/55 55/55
Pit stops 2 2

Force India drivers’ lap times throughout the race (in seconds):

https://www.racefans.net/charts/2011drivercolours.csv

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55
Adrian Sutil 115.474 108.69 108.826 107.583 107.201 107.047 107.444 106.738 106.532 106.33 105.926 106.301 106.043 107.032 106.422 114.765 154.62 120.668 154.913 152.874 105.216 104.894 104.245 104.601 104.48 104.48 104.425 104.512 103.777 104.147 104.204 104.134 104.094 104.346 109.995 122.081 103.275 102.821 102.653 103.273 102.67 102.432 102.197 102.114 102.489 102.145 103.027 102.435 102.014 102.028 102.419 102.242 102.312 102.539 103.078
Paul di Resta 114.125 107.92 107.389 107.045 107.671 107.217 107.791 106.879 106.621 106.284 110.682 124.009 105.124 105.662 105.432 110.84 133.947 117.114 165.633 152.397 105.956 104.823 104.316 104.499 104.336 106.671 104.629 104.492 104.091 104.505 109.677 121.288 103.444 102.709 102.949 102.758 102.924 102.98 102.571 102.637 102.382 102.523 102.285 102.388 102.166 102.916 102.156 102.706 103.178 102.102 102.495 102.885 102.686 102.783 102.908

Adrian Sutil

Start tyre Soft
Pit stop 1 Super soft 24.82s
Pit stop 2 Soft 21.916s

Sutil reached Q3 but did not set a time in the session, starting tenth.

Both he and Di Resta were passed by Michael Schumacher and JAime Alguersuari within the first seven laps, the Force Indias lacking the straight-line speed to keep their rivals behind in the DRS zone.

Sutil passed his team mate on lap 26 but fell back behind him again at the final round of pit stops and finished 11th.

Adrian Sutil 2011 form guide

Paul di Resta

Paul di Resta, Force India, Korea, 2011
Start tyre Super soft
Pit stop 1 Super soft 22.075s
Pit stop 2 Soft 21.06s

Di Resta voiced his concerns about the straight-line speed advantage of his rivals before the race and they were realised.

He held ninth place with seven laps to go but the speed difference as the second Toro Rosso of Sebastien Buemi came past him in the DRS zone was too much for him to resist.

Di Resta had urged his team to use an aggressive strategy. But after the race he felt that even tweaking the strategy wouldn’t have changed the finishing position: “We probably should have been a bit more aggressive with the strategy and used my new super softs at the start of the race, rather than the used set, but I’m not sure it would have changed where we finished.”

Paul di Resta 2011 form guide

2011 Korean Grand Prix

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    Keith Collantine
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    18 comments on “Force India: Drivers defenceless against DRS attackers”

    1. Shouldn’t the title be “Sahara Force India: Drivers defenceless against DRS attackers”

      1. If they officially change the name of the constructor as recognised by the FIA (e.g. as here), then I’ll revise how I refer to them accordingly. They may well do this in time for next season.

    2. I’m really impressed with di Resta.

      For what it’s worth, I think Sutil is underated, and so for di Resta to now be consistently close to him, let alone beating him, is one heck of an achievement in my book.

      I think he can go on to win races and maybe even championships in a better car. Force India has been a good place to spend his debut year.

      Well done.

      1. I think Sutil is underated

        Really? I think Sutil is so overrated.

        Di Resta is doing a very strong job anyway, as he’s beating a reasonably fast guy with loads of experience.

        1. Hmm… I think that if you put Sutil in the Mercedes alongside Rosberg, you’d be surprised at how well he compares with him…

          BUT! I may well be wrong!

          1. marco_ferrari
            17th October 2011, 15:33

            My opinion is that Adrian is a very underrated driver… He leads “the future champion” Di Resta in points and has also really bounced back on Saturdays… Since Canada Grand Prix only Jaime Alguersuari scored more points in races then him…
            Btw. both Force India drivers are performing on selected tracks differently… It looks to me that Adrian likes nicely flowing circuits where braking is not so important (Spa, Suzuka, Istanbul, Silverstone) and Di Resta prefers the opposites – tracks with a lot of slow corners (Singa, Hungaro) and those with heavy braking from top speed sections (Monza, Montreal)… At least I have this impression…

            1. marco_ferrari
              17th October 2011, 15:44

              “Since Canada Grand Prix only Jaime Alguersuari scored more points in races then him…”

              From midfeild teams (Renault, Force India, Sauber, Toro Rosso, Williams), off course… :)

            2. I was going to say that didn’t sound quite right! :-)

              Interesting stat though.

            3. Your theory is interesting, Marco, but I don’t think it’s not entirely accurate.

              Your examples don’t really support your thesis too well: at Spa we never got to see Di Resta’s real pace because of the team mix up in qualy and Glock’s rampage in to turn 1; and at Japan and Istanbul he pretty much matched Sutil’s pace, and he outqualified and ran well ahead of him at Silverstone.

              I think that both Di Resta and Sutil have shown similar pace across most kinds of tracks, with Di Resta edging overall pace. I expect that next year — with a year’s worth of experience behind him — Di Resta will be considerably FASTER than Sutil. (However, I also expect Sutil to NOT be racing for Force India next year. Di Resta and Hulkenberg seems their likely driver line-up.)

      2. I think that the most impressive thing about Di Resta is that he is CONSISTENTLY on the pace. You would expect a rookie driver to have the occasional bad weekend, but Di Resta has been on it from the word go.

        Move over Schumacher!

    3. If the teams at the top find that passing via DRS sometimes doesn’t work then surely the bottom teams are out of luck. How the system works is another F1 travesty and is nothing more than trying to be better than Indy Car with their “push to pass” system. At least in Indy Car both leaders and followers have the same system and it is available whenever it best be used and I note for only so many times during a race. Is DRS, the “Dumb Racing System” Formula Ones answer to upstage a much superior method of passing scene in Indy Car racing?? I still think these gimmicks for the televison audience aren’t in the best interest of racing in general and should be outlawed. If you have a big enough set of ____ and know how to get the pass done then that in itself should be what race car driving is all about. I am concerned that the next generation of drivers will know more about how to use gimmicks to race than develope the skills needed to aggressively race and be able to defend positions without all of the technological nonsense presently used. Ban DRS, KERS, Pirelli candy tires and bring back ground effects, turbos and twenty inch wide rear tires. Let drivers race again.

      1. The main difference between F1 and IndyCar is that it’s a set chassis across the pond so over in the F1 circus you are going to get some cars more suited to some circuits than others. Using this weekend as an example, Webber kept himself so close to Hamilton as result of DRS and most people pinpointed that as the highlight of the race.

        I don’t really understand where this obsession with the good old days stems from, F1 has always been at the forefront of motorsport technology and with that comes significant risk. It would not be the sport it is today without these advances and if that’s where your problem lies, perhaps the sport isn’t for you.

        1. I am fully aware that all levels of motorsport are ripe with rules that shape and make the sport what it is. If you honestly believe that DRS as it is presently being used is what is best to increase the interests of racing fans then there is something wrong. Many of us feel this path being taken with this “rule” about DRS is simply a poor idea of how one driver can us it to pass another. If you just accept any rule because it is a rule whether it is good for the sport or not as in this case then as I see it the problem isn’t solved and for sure the solution isn’t the right one.

          At no time in the history of racing has a “rule” like DRS ever been used or considered. Name me one current driver who has claimed that DRS is the best solution to his inablility to pass.

          The fact that I am vocal about this and other trends that are heading F1 in the wrong direction doesn’t make me want to stop watching F1, I have spent 40 years following the sport and will continue to.

          You are as hard core about F1 as I am but somehow you just accept whatever rules are and seem to agree with them solely based on it being the same for everyone on the grid.

          To find a solution to the problem of passing starts with understanding the problem then testing the waters of a solution that improves the problem.

          DRS is a solution that partially works but how it is used is absolutely a mess and the whole of the idea should be reapproched.

          1. I agree that it certainly needs refining and I won’t be happy if it isn’t sorted (or an attempt at least made) for 2012. Personally, I just find it difficult to be hyper-critical of it. It it’s very much an experiment and any experiment is likely to yield unfavourable results.

            1. More than fair, I agree with you. Thanks

      2. Well said, Ted Bell. 100% with you on this. DRS is the most destructive gimmick that this sport has ever seen.

        I would go so far to say that this year F1 has lost its essence as a sport. I still watch and enjoy the races, but it’s a very different sort of enjoyment to before. It all feels very superficial and contrived and ultimately unsatisfying.

        Get rid of DRS, Kers, Pirrelli tyres, bulletproof reliability, limitless run-off areas. Bring back honest racing machines and honest racing.

    4. Not as good as their previous results but at least they got a point!

      Since day one, di Resta had struck me as a driver that’s been in the sport for a good few years. His level headedness is one of his strongest qualities.

      I’d love to see him bag a race win one day.

    5. Force India’s attempts to reel in Renault will be valiant, but I think they’re ultiamtely going to be futile. They need twenty-three points from three races, and if Renault manage to score in just one of them, the challenge will be over before it begins.

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