Kimi Räikkönen and Lotus want to get back on the podium in Singapore

In Monza, for the first time since the British Grand Prix, Kimi Räikkönen was not on the podium, due to a track and tires that did not highlight the intrinsic qualities of the Lotus E20. However, this should not be the case in Singapore, where James Allison expects it to be a whole different story: « We go from minimum downforce to maximum downforce in two weeks. We will have the Soft and Super Soft tires instead of the Hards and Mediums, and the circuit does not favor power. It cannot be more different. »

Just as confident, Kimi Räikkönen relies on the performances of the Lotus E20 on the other two urban circuits on the calendar: « Monaco didn’t go too well for us, but Valencia was one of our best weekends. I see no reason why Singapore should be different from Valencia. Like all street circuits, it’s difficult to overtake here. So to achieve a good result, we’ll need to start as high as possible on the grid. […] Everyone will be bringing updates and we’ll have to see what differences that can make. It will be an opportunity to maximize our package and work well to find the best balance. If we succeed, we should be fine. » Romain Grosjean shares his teammate’s opinion: « It’s a circuit that requires a lot of downforce and that seems to suit us well, as we saw in Budapest. As for the tires, I think we should be fine as well. It’s always an interesting race and I’m looking forward to it. »

The Marina Bay circuit should suit the Lotus E20 even better as it handles bumps and curbs quite well, recalls James Allison. That has been the case all year, and we are happy about it. On a bumpy track, the setup compromise favors mechanical grip over aerodynamics, unlike on a smoother track. In the early years, the bumpy nature of Singapore was extreme, but it has been considerably improved since then.

Therefore, for Eric Boullier, there is no reason to think that the podium will be out of reach. And the Frenchman added: We have been competitive on twisty circuits this year, and Singapore has similar characteristics to Monaco and Valencia. Romain loves this type of circuit, and Kimi has always been fast in Singapore, even if luck hasn’t been on his side during the races. It will be an interesting weekend.

The director of the British team also confirmed that the team would not be using its Double-DRS system, which has been in development for several Grand Prix: « It does not match the characteristics of the circuit. It should be back in Japan. That said, we have planned some new developments for Singapore which should enhance performance. » And James Allison, the technical director of the team, elaborates: « We are introducing a new underbody and a new rear wing. The rear wing operates at the same downforce level as our Monaco specification, with a better delta for the DRS. This means that the DRS transitions better from its maximum drag setting to the reduced drag setting. We believe we have produced a rear wing at the end of the downforce spectrum that also allows us to maximize the potential of the DRS. This is more challenging to achieve at high downforce levels. It will be interesting to see how it performs on the track. »

Regarding the Renault alternator, which caused issues for Red Bull twice in Monza, Lotus aims to be reassuring through its technical director: « We continue to play our role in assisting Renault Sport to solve the problems as smoothly as possible. We don’t need to tell them that it’s an area that requires their attention. They are aware of the urgency. We are also ready to adapt if changes are needed on the car. »

On the drivers’ side, while Kimi Räikkönen admits he loves Singapore, particularly for the local cuisine, he nevertheless feels he has unfinished business in the city-state: “After two Grand Prix, I still haven’t scored a single point there. That doesn’t mean I’m not fast there, because apparently I still hold the lap record since 2008. I went off-track while fighting for fifth place in 2008 and finished tenth in 2009. This time, I want to do better.” Naturally, the Finn sets no other goal than the podium: “I’ve achieved six so far and scored as many points as the leaders in recent races. I’ve been able to extract the maximum from our package. I hope I can continue on this path in the upcoming races.”

For his part, Romain Grosjean will get back behind the wheel of the Lotus E20 after spending the Italian Grand Prix on the sidelines. A penalty that followed his collision at the Source corner but gave him the opportunity to approach the race from a new angle: « It is always useful to be on the pit wall with the engineers and look at the data. It offers a different perspective on how the cars behave, where the differences are, what can be improved, etc. I can also learn a lot from Kimi, he has such experience. As a teammate, he is both a reference and fantastic. A reference because he is very fast and has skills that I still need to develop. And fantastic because he is a true role model in the way he transforms his mindset during a race weekend to focus entirely on the task. Except for not being in the car, I think the Monza weekend was the best possible preparation for Singapore. »

While Eric Boullier thinks that Romain Grosjean has noted useful details and hopes that this story is now behind them, for the Frenchman, it will first and foremost be about reconnecting with his car, which he feels he has lost since Hockenheim: At the beginning of the season, I felt very comfortable, and until Valencia, the feeling I had in the car was simply fantastic. I’m not sure if it’s because of the tires, the settings, or something in my driving style. We need to analyze this and find out why. The gaps are so small that even the slightest detail can make the difference between the front row and the middle of the pack. I am determined to regain this synergy with the car in Singapore and to use this momentum for the rest of the season.

However, the tricolor driver has only raced once on the Singapore circuit, in 2009, and his race lasted only three laps before his Renault encountered brake problems: « I have little experience of the circuit, my first race here dates back to 2009 and the weekend was rather difficult. But I’m eager to get back in the car, learn the track a bit better, and set everything in place for the rest of the season. It’s another circuit, another race, and a new chance for me to come back and give my best. I want to qualify in a good position, be as close as possible to Kimi in performance, and score points for the team in the constructors’ championship. »