Hungarian GP: Spyker race notes

The Etihad Aldar Spyker Formula One Team's Adrian Sutil put in a spirited drive in today's Hungarian Grand Prix to secure 17th position overall. Demonstrating the improved relative pace of the Spyker F8-VII, Adrian enjoyed a race long fight with the two Hondas to finish 3.6secs ahead of Barrichello.

Sakon Yamamoto had a brief Spyker debut as he spun off the track and into the barriers at turn 11 on the fourth lap of the race.

The championship will now take a three-week hiatus before the next race in Turkey. Over this period, Spyker will be working on and testing its new B-spec car, which is scheduled to make its race debut in Istanbul.

Adrian Sutil:

"This race we showed we were quite competitive with the cars in front of us. We could race Honda, which meant I really had to push and attack every single lap. We did keep them behind until the end, which is a little success with this old car. Let's see what we can do in Turkey now - we know we are much closer in races, so hopefully with a new car we can be even better."

Sakon Yamamoto:

"After the start I really pushed but suddenly I lost rear grip in turn 11 and spun and crashed. I just made a mistake so I am really disappointed with this result as I wanted to finish the race, but I will keep working hard and focus on the next Grand Prix, where we will have the new car."

Mike Gascoyne, chief technical officer:

"A good and bad race for us. Sakon made a mistake early on, which is a shame as he'd had a good weekend until that point. Adrian on the other hand had a very good race, showing we were able to match the speed and beat the works Hondas. For a team with our limited resources we can be quite proud of this. We know that the race pace is better than we show in Qualifying, so we must improve this area, but we can look forward to the updated car in Turkey where we can hopefully finish in front of some more people."

Colin Kolles, team principal and managing director:

"Adrian had a great showing, demonstrating we can beat other teams on race pace. It's hopeful, as with the improved speed of the new car in Turkey, we should be able to take the fight to a few more people. It was bad luck for Sakon, but I am sure as he gets more experience of the team and car he will have better races."

Adrian Sutil
Chassis: F8-VII/03
17th, 1:36.28.802 (2 laps)
Fastest lap: 1:22.263

Sakon Yamamoto
Chassis: F8-VII/04
DNF: Accident (4 laps)
Fastest lap: 1:26.741

-credit: spyker