Sunday: In Singapore, “the result is not so bad” for Lotus
Sixth at the finish of the Singapore Grand Prix, Kimi Räikkönen believes he could have done better if he hadn't been stuck behind the Mercedes drivers. On the other side of the Lotus garage, Romain Grosjean is pleased to have been "so close" to the Finn in terms of performance, even though he had to let him pass during the race.
Kimi Räikkönen – 6th:
« After the qualifications, today’s result is not too bad. But I think we had a chance to do a little better. I wasn’t fast enough to play for the podium, but the first safety car outing didn’t help me. I might have gained another place without it. I was definitely faster than Michael [Schumacher] and Nico [Rosberg] but I was stuck behind them for most of the race, and it’s frustrating. It’s so difficult to overtake here that you have to hope for a mistake from an opponent or pass them in the pit. I’m still third in the championship, but we need to improve in the next races to fight with the leaders. I hope we can make a step forward in Japan and get back on track. »
Romain Grosjean – 7th:
« The race was tough but the result is not so bad. I got a good start and managed to maintain my position even though it was tense in the first corners. But the car was running well. Our performance was better than we imagined at the beginning of the weekend. Obviously, I lost a place to Kimi, but he was faster than me at the end of the race and it didn’t make sense to block him. It’s never easy for a driver to let another pass, even if it’s your teammate. But you have to be smart in these circumstances. My goal is to be as close to Kimi as possible in performance, like today. So after a difficult start, we can be happy with the result. »
From the official statement released by Lotus F1 Team
