Spanish Grand Prix proved to be a good one for the Force India team and the team is quite excited about the next race at Monaco. Force India owner Vijay Mallya seemed upbeat and shared the feelings of many other Formula One participants on Thursday when he warned that Saturday’s qualifying session for the Monaco Grand Prix will a “lottery.”

Mallya entered the coveted motor sport in 2007 when he took over the struggling Spyker team. Mallya agreed with the opinions of various other owners and managers and was heard saying that the speed differences between the cars will cause trouble and prevent many from clocking their fastest potential times.

He said: “We were very satisfied with the pace of our longer runs and the positions in both sessions were encouraging. “However, what we have seen is that the speed difference between the cars — sometimes up to five seconds — will make qualifying a lottery.”

The circuit has a very unforgiving nature and over taking proves to be one big challenge. And the ever-present complaints about the traffic are just so typical of the Monaco circuit for decades now. But in reality, it is the very ‘lottery conditions’ and the burden on driving expertise that have kept this unique event alive in Monaco.

The Circuit de Monaco boasts of a number of twists, tight corners, elevation shifts and a narrow corner that makes it one of the best-loved and most demanding tracks in Formula One racing championships. No wonder then that three-time champion Brazilian Nelson Piquet compared the feeling of racing a Formula One car at Monaco to trying to ride a bicycle through your living room.

Vijay Mallya epitomizes luxury and his vast yachts are already parked at the harbours. The Indian liquor baron feels that his team deserves a place in the top ten for their speed and performance, regardless of his drivers’ ability to avoid trouble and pick the best moment to go for a fast lap time. “We believe we have the potential to be right up there fighting for Q3, but we’ll have to see how it goes on Saturday,” he said.

“The right ingredients are there, we just need them to mix together in the right way.” Force India’s German driver Adrian Sutil was eighth fastest after Thursday’s two free practice sessions. “It was a very good day for me” he said. “I’m very happy with my performance and with the car. The car is going very consistently and I could set good lap times so it looks promising.”