Mat Coch writes:

He might have knocked the reigning world champion out of the final phase of qualifying, but tenth spot was not what Paul di Resta was aiming for in qualifying.

"We're reasonably happy we got in to Q3, the only downside is we didn't manage to go a bit quicker," di Resta lamented.

Going head to head with the top three teams, and both Saubers, many had expected di Resta to sit out final phase of the session to save tyres for the race.

"Looking at it now we shouldn't have run, but at the same point there were four cars within a tenth in Q2 at the end so it was all to play for," explained the Scot. "We could have been anywhere between tenth and seventh as far as I could see. Coming in to the weekend we would have been happy with that, this track demands a fair amount from the car and it has put us in a position to fight for points."

Di Resta is hopeful that in race trim he can remain competitive against the cars around him. "That doesn't mean to say we should rule ourselves out here because it's a bit different; temperatures are different and tyre compounds are different.

"It's going to be tough," he added. "We're slow in the middle sector but reasonably competitive in sector one and sector three, but not massively top of the charts; not enough out of sync I don't think to make a difference."

Historically the Spa-Francorchamps circuit has been kind to the Silverstone-based squad, with Giancarlo Fisichella scoring the team's only pole position at the Belgian circuit in 2009. A points finish is crucial for Force India's hopes come the end of the season, the team is currently eighth in the Constructors' Championship, seven points behind Williams.