Force India still has a chance of overhauling Sauber

The Silverstone-based outfit is 27 points behind Sauber with four races remaining, so will need some top-line results if it is to beat its Swiss rivals.

Team principal Vijay Mallya said on Tuesday that his outfit would be fired up by racing in front of the Indian crowd, and reckoned there was still everything to play for in the constructors' battle.

"The gap to Sauber is now 27 points. It's a big lead, but not impossible to catch them before the end of the year," he said.

"There's still a lot of racing to go and we will keep the pressure up for the final four races."

Mallya believes the strength of his team this year has been its consistency, rather than starring performances, as he expressed delight at the way it had moved forward since the summer break.

"It certainly feels like we have upped our game since the summer break and it has been satisfying to see us up there fighting for good points," he said.

"The only frustration is that we have not always managed to get two cars in the points and that has hurt us in the championship.

"But in terms of outright performance, I think we can be pleased with our level of consistency. We've had at least one car in the top ten of qualifying in over 80 per cent of the races and scored points in 75 per cent of the races.

"While we may not have finished on the podium this year, it is our consistency that has been key to our success and kept us in the fight."