Sunday: Räikkönen finally unlocks Lotus’s victory counter
By winning the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Kimi Räikkönen gave the Lotus F1 team its first victory of the season. It was also the Finn's first win since his return to F1 at the beginning of the year. The race was not as perfect for Romain Grosjean, who had to retire following a contact with Mark Webber.
Kimi Räikkönen – Winner:
I’m really happy for the team, and for myself as well. You never know what will happen during a race; the safety car interventions made things complicated, but I’ve had many similar races this year. Today, we had a clear circuit to use our speed. Maybe we weren’t the fastest at the end, but we were fast and consistent enough to win so it’s great for the team. We’ve had some tough races in the second half of the season so it’s fantastic to come back with a victory.
Romain Grosjean – Retirement [Collision]:
« I am really happy for Kimi because it’s the victory we were all waiting for and it’s an incredible result for the team. As for me, I am disappointed because I was driving quite well. I had a great three-way battle in turn 11, then Sergio [Pérez] went off the track at turn 13 and came back inside at turn 14, leaving me no room to go anywhere else. Mark [Webber] then came up behind me and we touched; it was really unfortunate. A great day for the team, but an unlucky day for me. »
