Vijay Mallya formed Force India as he joined forces with the Mol family, co-owners of the then Spyker team in late 2007. A difficult first full season for the team in 2008 saw them finish tenth in the championship as they focussed on establishing a good foundation. The Silverstone-based outfit switched to Mercedes engines in 2009, providing them a solid start to develop the car. These decisions proved fruitful as the outfit moved up the grid and began to challenge for points. Giancarlo Fisichella secured the team's first podium finish at the 2009 Belgian GP. The team built on its performance the following year scoring points regularly and finishing seventh in the championship. In 2011, the team hired rookie Paul di Resta to drive along side Adrian Sutil who had been with the team since 2008. The partnership took Force India to a sixth place finish, narrowly missing out on the fifth spot. With the Sahara India Pariwar joining forces with Vijay Mallya in late 2011, the team became known as Sahara Force India looking to build on the momentum and reach greater heights. Adrian Sutil was dropped for the 2012 campaign and test driver Nico Hulkenberg was promoted to partner Paul di Resta. After a long season battling Sauber and Williams, 2012 proved to be Force India's most successful season at the time in terms of points.