Paul Di Resta has admitted to having a smile back on his face after finally ending his points drought in India on Sunday.
After drawing a blank in seven consecutive races, Di Resta conjured an eighth-place finish at the Buddh International Circuit.
With Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil also in the points, it was the first time since the British Grand Prix at the end of June both claimed a place in the top 10.
The result allowed Force India to stretch their advantage over Sauber in the battle for sixth place in the constructors’ championship to 23 points with three races remaining, starting in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.
With £7million in prize money the difference between finishing sixth and seventh, the duel is a crucial one for both teams.
Di Resta said: “It was a well-earned result (in India) by everyone and very important for the team’s hopes in the championship.
“We’ve had a tough run of things lately, so to get two cars in the points at the team’s home race has given us something to smile about, and we will certainly try and repeat the performance in Abu Dhabi.
“The direction we’ve taken with the car recently is more of a back-to-basics approach, which has helped.
“It’s given me more confidence and I can be more committed with the car, which is really important for a driver and it will help us for both qualifying and the race.”
Meanwhile, Christian Horner has dismissed claims Red Bull’s latest Formula One world title triumph is because the team have spent more money than any of their rivals.
The Milton Keynes-based marque and Sebastian Vettel became champions for a fourth successive season in India on Sunday after claiming the chequered flag for a sixth consecutive race. With billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz footing the bill, and given Red Bull have refused over the years to sign up to a resource restriction agreement that would cut costs, doubts will always linger over the team’s financial outlay.
“If you take like-for-like the numbers are extremely comparable with McLaren, and considering the success bonus we have paid as well, it is an erroneous assumption we are outspending every other team in Formula One,” said Horner.
“It is very easy to say Red Bull spends the most money in Formula One. That is factually incorrect.”