Di Resta back in pointsposted in F113 | 11 | 2011
BATHGATE'S PAUL DI RESTA returned to point-scoring form when he finished ninth in his first Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. But the 25-year-old Scot was left ruing the team's one-stop strategy for the race.
"We certainly made things tough for ourselves," Di Resta admitted. "With hindsight, my one-stop race was not the optimum strategy, but we felt it was worth a try.
"As it turned out the performance of the medium compound tyre was not great to begin with, so the first 30 laps were quite hard work.
"I had a good fight with the Toro Rosso of Sebastien Buemi in the early laps and I think we were quite lucky that he retired, which made my race a bit easier.
See more images of Paul racing in Abu Dhabi today
"When I switched to the softs, the speed of the car was very strong. To do a one-stop race and come away with two points is as much as we could really hope for.
"It’s what we need for our fight in the championship and hopefully we can arrive in Brazil and carry on where we left off.”
With Di Resta's team-mate Adrian Sutil also scoring points, it means his Sahara Force India team heads to the final race in Brazil in 10 days favourites to finish sixth in the constructors' championship.
"We've opened up a 15-point advantage now over our nearest challengers Sauber," Di Resta continued. "We're certainly not taking anything for granted, but we're definitely now in a strong position."
Scot Paul di Resta starts 10th in Abu Dhabi
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won the race after world champion Sebastien Vettel's Red Bull spun out with a puncture at the second corner.
Hamilton's first win since Germany in July saw him finish 8.457secs ahead of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari. Jenson Button was third in the other McLaren.
"I think it was one of my best races," Hamilton said after clinching his third win of the year. "Being able to hold off one of the best drivers in the world is tough to do.
"I'm ecstatic, really very happy to be back up here on the top step of the podium, and hopefully we can continue this form into the final race in Brazil."
Here's your chance to vote for Paul in the Autosport Rookie of the Year Award.
Keep up-to-date with all the latest news by following us on twitter.com/scotcars
Jim McGill