< Previousautobabes.com.aubehind. From there onwards it was a really difficult race. Unfortunately I couldn’t hang on to that seventh place. I had a mammoth stint on supersoft tyres, but couldn’t keep it to- gether in the end. Seventh would have still been okay-ish with the car potential that we had. Yes, it was disappointing, but there are reasons be- hind that. We need to put it together better on the weekends. Q: Talking of Baku, most drivers seemed to like the new street circuit. But it also seemed to be a track that you need to ‘click’ with. We have never seen so many mistakes from guys who are usually pretty flawless. One example: Lewis Hamilton… NH: …he was looking for supermarkets! (laughs) Q: Do you like the track? NH: Absolutely! We need tracks like that. For me personally, it looked spectacular on TV and it was spectacular to drive - but very challenging. In qualifying you really needed to take your heart in your mouth and tell yourself: you are now going for it. Think of how narrow it is and what speed we were doing there! It’s kind of crazy and awe- some at the same time. Just think of how many times we came to a ninety-degree corner at 340 or 350 km/h - with very hard braking and almost no run-off! A really difficult track - in a positive way: a huge challenge. And when you are going to the limit all the time you see drivers either us- ing the emergency exit, or spinning or crashing, whatever. Q: We will have a pretty demanding July: four races in a month. Usually it is the Sil- verstone weekend that sees serious up- grades on the cars - but is there time for implementation? NH: Yes, of course. The race team is busy mov- ing around, but at the factory everybody is work- ing full steam. Q: Will Force India be bringing something big? NH: There are still things in the pipeline that we will bring later in the year. I am not sure if it autobabes.com.au will be at Silverstone or not. But now is the time where we are starting to look ahead to 2017, to set priorities. Q: Wouldn’t it be a pity to let things go now that the team is on such a good run? Rather than concentrating on 2017 when nobody can guarantee the team will have such momentum? NH: Yes, it is tempting to stick to 2016. Yes, we have put the car back to where it belongs so we have a good base - and the teams around us are in the same position. Probably not the big three, but Williams and Toro Rosso - our immediate competitors - are also in the situation of asking themselves whether they will stick with 2016 or move quickly on to 2017. Q: Reports suggest that two big teams - Ferrari and Williams - could have seats available for 2017… NH: Really? (laughs) Interesting. Bad timing, as I still have a contract with Force India. It’s in black and white - all written down. And I am happy that I can stay at home at my place Force India! Q: Coming back to this weekend: you did pretty well here last year - with the pre- B-spec version. So either the track fits the car or the driver - or both... NH: I did pretty well, yes. I came here on the tailwind of my Le Mans win and drove the life out of my car here. (laughs) Looking at the weekend I think we will be competitive again - but Wil- liams will be strong. And if you take the big three teams you could argue that the first six places are already taken - then you have Williams, us, and Toro Rosso are also not too far away. I’ve had already some rough weekends, so luck final- ly should move over to my side. I want a smooth, clean weekend with a good result. And that from now on - weekend after weekend after weekend!Ricciardo commits future to Red Bull Daniel Ricciardo has poured cold water on rumours that he might switch teams by confirming that he intends to stay with Red Bull until at least the end of 2018. Speaking in the official FIA press conference ahead of this weekend’s Formula 1 Grosser Preis von Osterreich 2016, Ricciardo said he believes Red Bull - whom he joined from sister team Toro Rosso in 2014 - offer him the best chance of world championship success in the future. “We want to win,” said the Australian. “This year is going to be tough for a world title but obviously where we are this year is where we are. You can’t do anything about that now. “But looking ahead to next year and spending time with the team and seeing what’s ahead I think it’s the best place to be to try to challenge Mercedes, so that’s where [my decision] stems from.” Ricciardo’s words come a day after Red Bull confirmed they have taken up an option to extend Carlos Sainz’s contract with Toro Rosso by a further year, with Red Bull team principal Christian Horner suggesting it’s highly likely that both of the energy drink giant’s teams will field unchanged line-ups in 2017. Ricciardo, a three-time F1 race winner, is currently fifth in the drivers’ standings with 78 points, and has scored one podium finish and one pole position this season. autobabes.com.auautobabes.com.auautobabes.com.au_________________________ For tickets and travel to 2016 FORMULA 1 races, click here. For FORMULA 1 merchandise, click here. _________________________ autobabes.com.auautobabes.com.auautobabes.com.auNext >