Di Resta to cash-in in Koreaposted in F103 | 10 | 2013
BATHGATE'S PAUL DI RESTA returns to action this weekend in Korea eager to achieve the point-scoring finish he was denied by the mystery crash in Singapore a fortnight ago.
Despite intense investigations, the 27-year-old Scot's Sahara Force India team hasn't been able to identify what went wrong with his car causing him to crash out just five laps from the end of the Singapore Grand Prix.
Di Resta has looked to be on-course for a potential sixth-place finish, and much-needed Constructors' Championship points in their battle with McLaren.
But after spending a week back at his Monaco base, concentrating on his fitness ahead of the final push towards the end of the season, the Scot can't wait to get back into his race car.
"What happened in Singapore is still pretty fresh in my mind, and the disappointment's still there," Di Resta explained. "When you have a race like that you just want to get back in the car as soon as possible.
"Getting back home, and pushing myself in the gym, and out on the road on the bike, was the perfect way to clear my mind and prepare for the final push at the end of the season.
"October is the busiest month of the year, with grands prix in Korea, Japan and then India, all in the space of four weekends.
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"It was important to have some quality time at home before I headed off to spend the next couple of months travelling.
"Yeongam is another technical lap with some quite distinctive sectors and different characteristics.
"There are some slower, more technical parts to the lap in the first sector, which should play to our strengths. The second and third sectors are high-speed and have a nice flow.
"Pirelli's tyre choices are the same as in Singapore, so it will be interesting to see how they perform in Korea.
"We’ve always gone well on the supersofts, but struggled more on the medium compound, so hopefully we can switch it on this weekend.
"What is clear is that we have inherent pace in the car: we just need to keep delivering it and hope we can finally deliver the results we're capable of in the team.
"Everyone in the team is quietly confident we can repeat our pace from Singapore, and if we can call the right strategy, we should be able to score some crucial world championship points for the team."
The race though, as was the case in Singapore, is expected to be dominated by champion-elect, Sebastian Vettel.
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The Red Bull driver won at a canter last time out, and even his rivals have admitted they expect the three-time world champ to dominate.
Asked whether Vettel's dominance in Singapore was a once-off, former world champ Lewis Hamilton admitted he didn't think so.
"They have a lot more in the bag than we get to see, so he was just cruising.
"I think in the race, at the restart, everyone is pushing, so there is no reason why he shouldn't pull away.
"If you look at the onboard, he is on the power full throttle at least 20 metres before anyone else, which is a huge advantage.
"There is nothing you can really do, as you are always asking for more rear downforce.
"The last time I was able to put the pedal down that quick was back in 2007 or 2008, when we had traction control."
Vettel heads into Sunday's race 60 points clear of the Ferrari of his nearest rival, double world champ Sebastiaon Vettel.
And with only five grands prix remaining after Korea, Vettel basically has his fourth title in the bag, bearing unforeseen developments.
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Jim McGill