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Di Resta: I’ve not
missed my chance
Failure to secure a top drive for 2013 is not a concern for Force India star
Paul di Resta insists that
a winter of reflection has
helped him move on from
missing out in the battle for
2013’s Formula 1 top seats.
The Scotsman had been linked
with McLaren, Mercedes and
Ferrari for this year, but lost out
at each – the drives going to
Sergio Perez, Lewis Hamilton
and Felipe Massa respectively.
Di Resta’s disappointment at
not being picked for the plum
seats was further amplified by
a difficult end to last season,
where Sauber-bound team-mate
Nico Hulkenberg appeared to
gain the upper hand.
But having had time to look
deeper at what happened last
year, di Resta is sure that he can
rediscover his best form and
put the lessons of what went
wrong in 2012 to good use in
the season ahead.
“I’m ready to smash out the
beginning of the year,” he told
AUTOSPORT. “I am more eager
than ever, and I am absolutely
up for the fight.”
WHAT WENT WRONG IN 2012?
In Formula 1, it is often said
that you are only as good as
your last race, which is why
a poor finish to the 2012
campaign masked what had
been a nip-and-tuck fight with
Hulkenberg up until that point.
After the summer break, di
Resta appeared to be gaining the
advantage, highlighted by him
setting the fourth fastest time in
qualifying at Monza (before being
handed a five-place grid penalty)
and then finishing a career-best
fourth in Singapore.
Di Resta believes that his
campaign then turned after
a crash in the second free
practice in Japan when he
spun off at the Spoon Curve.
Unbeknown to the Force India
team at the time, the incident
caused hidden damage to the
chassis. Over the next three
events, di Resta was baffled by his
12 autosport.com January 17 2013
car’s poor handling and a lack of
straight-line speed.
It was only a decision to change
the chassis for the Abu Dhabi GP
that got things back on track for
di Resta, but the year ended with a
run of frustrating events where he
just could not hook things up.
The new generation of tracks at
the end of the season – which were
typified by slippery surfaces – did
not play to his smooth driving style,
but instead favoured the more
aggressive Hulkenberg.
“Nico had a difficult time at the
beginning of the season, and I had
mine at the end,” di Resta said. “And
unfortunately it was not the right
time of the year for people to
remember the good races.”
BATTLE FOR TOp dRIvE
Di Resta faced further
disappointment towards the end
of last season when his dreams
of making the step up to a top
team were dashed.
While Mercedes was always
unlikely to come off for this season,
and Ferrari’s preferred option from
day one was to help Massa rediscover
his form to secure his place with the
team, there was more surprise at
McLaren electing to take Perez as
Hamilton’s replacement.
Although di Resta admits that
he does not “fully understand” the
reasons for McLaren taking the
Mexican, it is understood a
combination of factors conspired
against him. There was the fact
Scot’s best finish
came in Singapore
that McLaren had already had an
all-British line-up that left chiefs
reluctant to sign another home
driver for fear of becoming typecast;
Perez’s financial backing from
Carlos Slim at a time when McLaren
is looking for a new title sponsor for
2014; and the Mexican’s podium
finishes in Malaysia, Canada and
Italy, which had done his reputation
no harm at all (di Resta is yet to
finish in the top three).
Although the McLaren door
appears firmly closed for now, other
good options for 2014 are there to
be taken if di Resta can impress at
Force India this year.
Massa’s contract at Ferrari is only
until the end of this year, while Red
Bull could have a vacancy if Mark
Webber retires.
“I am just going to keep up
the momentum, keep a good
vibe around me and keep the
teams’ attention,” he said.
“There will be drives coming
up in the future.
“I will continue to give
my all to Force India, but
I want to be winning
races. I want to be
doing something.
But I’ll try to keep
a friendly face
and keep a good
relationship
with everybody
because time
is short,
and it’s a
small world.”