The Force India team has been praised by no less an authority than Formula 1's managing director of motorsport, Ross Brawn.
“The Silverstone-based team is pretty much guaranteed fourth place in the constructors’ championship for a second consecutive season," said Brawn in a Formula 1 media release. "Which is an impressive achievement.
“I must congratulate them," he added. "They have shown that good organisation and effective use of available resources can deliver impressive results."
Brawn certainly knows what he's talking about. As technical director, he helped take Benetton and Ferrari to multiple world championships. He then became team principal at Honda, taking over as owner in 2009 when Jenson Button clinched the title.
After that he was team principal at Mercedes for four years. He played a key role in luring Lewis Hamilton to the team in 2013.
Brawn said it was the consistency that Force India had displayed which had most impressed him this season. They've scored points in every race this year with the exception of Monaco.
“Suzuka was the 13th race of this campaign in which the team has seen both its drivers score points,” Brawn pointed out.
However the team has not been without its problems in 2017. Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon have clashed both on and off the track. It's cost the team points and even potential podiums over the course of the season.
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku was a particularly bruising day out for the pair.
Such bust-ups have led the team to impose team orders on Perez and Ocon in recent outings. At least, until that fourth place in the championship is mathematically locked up.
Brawn said that was a shame, and he regretted the drivers had needed to be held back from racing one another.
“The Ocon-Perez line-up is a potent combination and the intense level of competition between them is bringing out the best in both,” he said.
"Also, it’s simply great fun watching the inevitable battle develop between them each weekend.
“The two team-mates found themselves racing one another again [in Suzuka], but unlike previous recent occasions when this happened, the sparks didn’t fly.
"Some might regret the excitement that had delivered," he noted. "But I’m sure the team were glad of a quieter afternoon in Suzuka, at least."
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