Force India celebrate breakthrough year

SAO PAULO, Nov 27, 2011 (AFP) - Force India were celebrating on Sunday after they completed their strongest season to date by taking sixth place in the Formula One constructors standings.

Their impressive performance was confirmed when drivers Adrian Sutil and Paul Di Resta finished sixth and eighth in the Brazilian Grand Prix, the final race of the 2011 series.

Deputy team chief Robert Fernley said: "Adrian and Paul drove brilliant races to add 12 more points to our tally -- and confirm our sixth place in the championship, our highest finish to date.

"I'm also very pleased that we could move Adrian up to ninth in the drivers' standings. As a team, we have taken great strides forward this season and now is the time to congratulate everyone who has contributed to that.

"We head into the winter in good spirits and determined to come back even stronger next year to pick up where we left off."
Sutil, who has been linked with a possible move to Williams as a replacement for Rubens Barrichello, said: "It completes a great weekend where everything went to plan.

"I had a good feeling in all the sessions and the team did a brilliant job to give me such a good car. We also made the right calls with the strategy because we knew there was a chance to beat Mercedes -- and that's exactly what we did."

Di Resta said: "My eighth place is a great result after quite a tough race for me. There was a concern with the gearbox around half way through the race so the team told me to just try and bring the car home.

"So that's the end of my first season of Formula One -- and it's been a great year, especially now we have finished sixth in the championship."