Nico Hulkenberg had a strong qualifying performance at Interlagos on Saturday, finishing sixth fastest, and will start fifth due to the penalty for Valtteri Bottas, matching his best starting position of the season.
The Sahara Force India driver hopes to be able to at least match this position during the race on Sunday, and feels confident he can bring a good result home for the team after finding a good set-up overnight on his VJM08.
“I’m very happy with the qualifying result,” reflected Hulkenberg. “I always enjoy driving here because I love the track, the country and the atmosphere that surrounds this event.
“The car felt great today and I was really happy with each of my laps in all the sessions. We made some important changes to the car last night and found a positive direction, which really paid off this morning because I was much happier with the feel of the car.
“With the penalty for Valtteri [Bottas], it means I will start from fifth place with just the Mercedes and Ferraris ahead of me, so that’s a fantastic effort by the team.
“At the very least we want to hold position in the race and bring home the result because there are some quick cars behind us who will try and make things difficult. I’m feeling confident for tomorrow and looking forward to a fun race.”
