Toro Rosso needs outside factors to score again, say drivers

Contesting the season with a year-old Ferrari power unit, Toro Rosso has dropped down the pecking order as the campaign went on.

The Faenza-based team has put just two points on the board in the last six races, courtesy of a ninth-place finish by Daniil Kvyat at Singapore - the track that was expected to be the team's last good chance at a standout result.

At the most recent race in Suzuka, Kvyat was 13th, while teammate Carlos Sainz laboured to a 17th-place finish.

Asked whether STR would now have to rely on increment weather to get a good result, Sainz said: "To go for the points, probably yes. To go for Q3, definitely yes.

"The tracks we have ahead now, they all have very long straights. It's going to be tough but we will try."

That sentiment was echoed by Kvyat, who said: "I think Austin is very similar in terms of power limitations, we'll try to do our best there... Mexico is even more power-limited.

"Many things have to come together for us to get into the points."

On whether STR would be holding out hope for rain, Kvyat said: "We never know - we still have to make things work very well in the wet, too. If we get everything right, yeah, it [rain] is probably better for us, 'cause you spend less time under full throttle.

"It doesn't guarantee us anything, but at least it gives us more hope."

Kvyat also admitted that Toro Rosso would have to take more risks with strategy to try and make up for the power deficit.

"When there will be races with safety cars, wet-dry, drying track, wet track, then yeah, [we will risk]... but [at Suzuka] there was no window to do that."

Williams, Force India target for 2017

Sainz, who has enjoyed a breakthrough season at Toro Rosso and had reportedly attracted interest from Ferrari and Renault, has conceded he is already looking forward to 2017 - when STR gets an up-to-date Renault engine.

"Hopefully, Renault next year will give us... I'm not asking for a Mercedes, but probably something close to it," Sainz said.

"And with a strong chassis that James [Key] and his team are able to produce in the last couple of years, we should be able to fight where the Williams, Force Indias are."

Additional reporting by Jonathan Noble