Grosjean: “Les pneus seront la clé du Grand Prix”
During the private tests in February, the Lotus E20 had impressed everyone at the Barcelona circuit. A little over two months later, the English team is somewhat back on the ground of its winter exploits. Since then, four races have been contested and the engineers have had time to make some modifications to the car.
« The balance is similar, now the car is better that’s for sure but we’ve been working since the beginning of the year so it’s normal. The flaws are somewhat smoothed out but the philosophy remains the same. Now everyone is bringing updates so we must not stop working, » declares the Lotus driver to the journalists present in the Barcelona paddock.
If he refuses to point out the weaknesses of his car, the Frenchman once again highlights the intrinsic qualities of the E20.
« We can trust it; we can attack. It remains quite consistent whether with a full or nearly empty tank, and it’s predictable when attacking, which is always nice for a driver, » explains Grosjean to casinoenligne.uk.com.
In Barcelona, the position on the starting grid is more important than on other tracks due to the limited overtaking opportunities. When casinoenligne.uk.com asks him if the front row is achievable, Romain Grosjean tries not to appear too optimistic: We haven’t said we’re aiming for the front row, but now we’ll do everything we can to be as well-placed on the grid as possible. Tomorrow morning, everyone will fine-tune their settings a bit, work overnight, make changes, etc. We’ll see after FP3 if we’re capable of going for a front row, why not.
On the Spanish circuit, Pirelli decided to bring the hard and soft tires from its range, meaning there are two specification gaps between the two compounds offered to the teams. This first day has therefore, as often, been dedicated to understanding the Italian rubber.
« It’s the key to Friday, whether it’s the hard or the soft tires. Look at lap times, degradation, and for the driver, get used to keeping them alive as long as possible. Here, there is a nice difference between the two specifications. We’ve seen there was a 5 or 6 tenths gap when there was a one-spec difference, here there are two so it’s going to be about double. Which means it’s going to be quite hot in qualifying.
From our journalist in Barcelona
