"This is just the start for us though, nobody expected us to be as competitive as we are. We've been on the grid for little over five months and look how far we have come. We are deploying all resources to improve now. No one expects miracles, but the fact we have qualified in the top 17, the fact we finished in the top twelve in Bahrain and Malaysia - and now in the top ten in Spain - shows we are a genuine midfield contender now, not a backmarker.
"Of course, the field is incredibly tight, with at least ten cars within a couple of tenths of each other. It's a bitter contest now, where everything counts, but I am delighted to see we are in that game."
Fisichella's Barcelona performance, where the veteran finished tenth, but ran as high as eighth, provided some encouragement for the Silverstone-based team, even if Mallya still respects the squad's limitations.
"I was not expecting an eighth place finish when I saw the car in eighth, but I am very pleased that we made the top ten at the end of the race," he admitted, "We're getting better and better in every race. In the last race, [Fisichella] kept
Lewis Hamilton behind him, and this time he kept
Nick Heidfeld in a
BMW behind him for almost eight laps. It was great to see, and it was great brand exposure for us too!
"Nothing is better than a top ten result, it's a great feeling. It's a feeling that makes us believe in ourselves, and the fact that we're making progress. We shouldn't underestimate this achievement - this team was getting better all the time last year, [but] regular top twelve finishes were something of a rarity. I hope this year we can make it a permanent trend."
