Team Information
Team Information
About Sahara Force India
Sahara Force India can now genuinely call itself part of the F1 establishment. Since its creation in 2008, the team has steadily made its way up the grid, achieving its best result of sixth in the championship in 2011.
It’s a remarkable step forward for the Silverstone-based outfit. A long-term plan, strong management and an insatiable hunger has enabled the crack team to emerge as a dynamic force capable of giving the frontrunners more than a little to worry about.
The statistics bear witness to this: in 2009 it secured its debut pole, podium and fastest lap, in 2010 it was seventh in the championship with 68 points, nine top ten starts and 15 points scoring finishes: a consolidation of that early promise. Given the size and resources of the team, such a performance was even more remarkable. The story continued last year as the team took another step up the championship ladder with 17 points finishes.
The team’s strong form is the crystallisation of the vision set out by Team Principal, Dr. Vijay Mallya, chairman of India’s iconic UB Group. The team incorporates the colours of the Indian flag and is a sporting representation of the emerging generation of young, aspirational, fast-paced global Indians and the growing strength of India as a nation.
Following the signing of a historic partnership with Sahara India Pariwar, the team heads into the new season determined to build on its momentum and reach even greater heights in 2012.
A brief history of Sahara Force India
2007
The Force India Formula One Team is created as the Orange India Holdings group, led by Dr. Vijay Mallya and Jan and Michiel Mol, purchases the Silverstone-based outfit from Spyker. The deal is formally announced in October.
2008
Force India makes history in Australia as the first Indian team to contest a round of the FIA Formula One World Championship. Giancarlo Fisichella partners Adrian Sutil, aided by Tonio Liuzzi as test and reserve driver. Adrian runs in a brilliant fourth place in the closing stages of the Monaco GP, only to be hit by Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari. Fisichella earns a season best 10th in Spain, but despite making strong progress the team finishes the year with no points. It also agrees a partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies and Mercedes-Benz for the supply a complete drivetrain for the 2009 season.
2009
Sutil and Fisichella start the season, and solid car development soon shows Force India’s potential. The team comes close several times before finally securing its first points in style as Fisichella takes a brilliant pole position and finishes second at the Belgian Grand Prix. For the Italian GP Fisichella has the chance to join Scuderia Ferrari, so Liuzzi steps up from the third driver role. He qualifies an encouraging seventh in his first outing at Monza, where Sutil starts a superb second and grabs his first points with a strong drive to fourth. The German also posts the fastest lap of the race. He goes on to qualify a brilliant third on a damp track in Brazil. The team finishes the year in ninth place in the World Championship, having scored 13 points.
2010
Sutil and Liuzzi continue as Force India’s race drivers, while talented Scot, Paul Di Resta, joins as test and reserve driver. From the start of the season the cars are both regular top 10 qualifiers and points-scorers. Sutil finishes in the points nine times, with a best of fifth place in both Malaysia and Belgium. He finishes 11th in the World Championship. Liuzzi makes the top 10 on five occasions, highlighted by sixth in Korea. Under the new system the team scores 68 points and moves up to seventh in the World Championship, just a point behind Williams in sixth. Between his DTM commitments with Mercedes, Di Resta gains valuable F1 experience by taking part in eight Friday practice sessions on Grands Prix weekends.
2011
Di Resta is confirmed as Adrian Sutil’s team mate for 2011, becoming the third British driver on the grid. Nico Hülkenberg joins as test and reserve driver, having previously raced for Williams. Together they form one of the most exciting line-ups on the grid. The season starts well with points for both cars in Australia, but it is not until the second half of the year that the team really finds its stride. The highlights include a superb sixth place for Sutil in Germany and a double-points finish for the team in Singapore. The team finishes a comfortable sixth in the standings, just four points behind Renault, to sign off Force India’s most successful season to date.
In October 2011, Indian company Sahara India Pariwar, becomes a co-owner of the team with an investment of $US 100 million. The team is renamed Sahara Force India.
In December Nico Hülkenberg and Paul Di Resta are confirmed as the team’s drivers for the 2012 season.
