Force India needs more time, says Renault's Piquet Jr

Renault's Formula-One race driver Nelson Piquet Jr, who enthralled the motorsport lovers during the roadshow here Sunday, feels that Force India will take some time to gain foothold in the circuit.

The Vijay Mallya-owned Force India finished last in the F-1 Team Championship this season. Their best performance was a 10th spot finish in the Spanish Grand Prix by Italian driver Giancarlo Fisichella.

"It is not easy to perform straightway. Force India is a new team and they have put up a decent performance this season. They need to have a good budget, new developments and sponsors to be up there," Piquet Jr said at the ING Renault F-1 roadshow at Rajpath here.

"No team, be it Renault, McLaren or others, performs exceptionally in the first season. With time, they become a formidable force in the F-1 circuit," said Piquet, son of three-time World Champion Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet.

F-1 started night races with the Sinagpore GP and Piquet felt the concept will help increase the popularity of the sport.

"It does not make a big difference for the drivers as the vision was as clear as daytime. But it is an interesting concept and good for the viewers. The sport needs such new innovations," said Piquet. He finished 12th in the drivers standings in his debut season with 19 points and a podium finish.

"I am not 100 per cent satisfied with my performance this season. But it was my first year in the F-1 circuit and I have learnt a lot. I am expecting completely different results next season," said Piquet who secured second place in the German GP behind champion Lewis Hamilton.

The 23-year-old Brazilian said he was satisfied with his team's performance. Renault finished fourth with 80 points in the overall team standings.

"I don't think we fell back. The car last year was not that great. We are going to have new cars next year but the new ones will not be provided to us straightway. We will only get them in January."

"Fernando Alonso is also back now and I hope next year we are gonna start much better and hopefully get more podium finishes," said Piquet. He and his countrymate Lucas di Grassi drove in the ING Renault Road Show showcasing Meagane Trophy cars, Toon cars, Logan cars, along with R-27 F-1 cars here.av/abr/vt

(436 Words)09112101NNNN (IANS)

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