Force India missed out on their first Formula One points in cruel fashion in China today when Adrian Sutil crashed six laps from the end while in sixth place.
The German, who was also shunted out of last year's Monaco Grand Prix in the closing stages while running fourth, said he had no control over his car when it pitched into the tyre wall at the rain-sodden Shanghai circuit.
"I was very lucky to keep the car on the circuit so long," said Sutil, who had been ahead of McLaren's world champion Lewis Hamilton at the time.
"It's a shame, you focus so much and you think you can do it, but the car was just out of control at the end."
The 26-year-old German had started 18th but took advantage of the first safety car period to pit on lap 19 and switch to a one-stop strategy that, despite the heavy rain and spray, lifted him into the points.
Force India had not scored in 20 races but the Mercedes-powered team looked to have ended that when their hopes were dashed again.
"I had the same feeling as Monaco -- it's hard to believe when you are in the car and then suddenly you lose it and it's all over. But you have to get over it ... I just feel bad for everyone here," said Sutil.
In Monaco, Ferrari's 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen crashed into the rear of Sutil's car. In China, he had Hamilton right behind him.
"Maybe it's a little bit of bad luck," said the German. "It's just a little coincidence but it's nice to race the world champions when we don't have the fastest car in the field right now."
Mark Webber, who finished second for Red Bull, described the conditions as "right on the edge of safety", but that was not much solace for Force India team boss Vijay Mallya.
"What a phenomenal race and yet what heartbreak," he said.
"We can all be proud of Adrian and the team's achievements today. He has proved yet again that he has genuine flair in the wet and came desperately close to scoring those elusive points once more.
"We made all the right calls in the race and functioned very well as a team, it was just a shame we couldn't convert it into points at the end of the race."