Sutil thrilled with top six

Adrian Sutil secures the best result to date for Force India in 2011 with sixth in the German Grand Prix
23.07.2011- Qualifying, Adrian Sutil (GER), Force India F1 Team, VJM04
23.07.2011- Qualifying, Adrian Sutil (GER), Force India F1 Team, VJM04
© PHOTO 4

Adrian Sutil said he was thrilled with a top six finish in the German Grand Prix after giving Force India its best result of the season so far in his home race.

Sutil's best finish going into the weekend was his seventh place finish in Monaco and his weekend started well when he put his car into Q3 for only the second time this season.

Electing to gamble on a two-stop strategy, Sutil enjoyed a trouble-free run to move up from eighth on the grid to sixth at the finish, although he insisted there was still work to be done for the Silverstone-based team to ensure the German result isn't a one-off.

"It was a great race today and I'm so pleased to get this result for the team because we really deserved it," he said. "We had a great car all weekend and everything just went perfectly. The tyres lasted well and we definitely made the right calls with the strategy, which helped me beat Nico [Rosberg] in the final stint.

"It was actually quite a lonely race for me because I spent most of the time running in clean air so I could really show the potential of the car. To get this result in my home race also makes it extra special and I'd like to thank the fans for their support this weekend. But this is just the start because we still have lots of work to do in the coming races to score lots of points and catch up with the teams ahead of us."

Team principal Vijay Mallya said he was delighted with the result, even though there was disappointment at the fact that Paul di Resta was unable to score after being involved in a clash with Nick Heidfeld on lap one.

"Today has been a wonderful team performance and I'm delighted to see Adrian finish in sixth place - a result that everybody has been working hard to achieve," he said. "We have been a bit unlucky in the last few races, but today we demonstrated the true pace of the car and delivered the result to match it.

"The only frustration is that Paul was the unfortunate victim of a first lap accident with Heidfeld. Without this, I'm sure we could have had both Force Indias finish in the points. Even so, we welcome the eight points scored today - points that are important for our championship position and move us ahead of Toro Rosso."

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