Grosjean is not shocked that Räikkönen is favored
Romain Grosjean confided that he had no problem seeing Kimi Räikkönen start testing at the wheel of the E20. The Frenchman also stated that the understanding with his teammate was good.
Romain Grosjean returns to Formula 1 this season with the Lotus F1 team. As in 2009, during his debut, he will be partnered with a world champion. Instead of Fernando Alonso, he starts a new career in F1 alongside Kimi Räikkönen.
The 2011 GP2 champion expressed his delight at the arrival of the Finnish driver to the Enstone team. He also has a good relationship with him.
His arrival at Lotus is a good thing, it’s a bit of a boost for the team, and things are going very well between us, Romain Grosjean said, as quoted by the Swiss daily Le Matin.
Räikkönen had the privilege of testing the Lotus E20 first before Jerez, and he is also the one starting the pre-season tests. But the fact that Räikkönen is somewhat favored does not bother Grosjean much.
It doesn’t shock me that he’s starting the tests, for marketing reasons. He was a world champion and he won’t need time to adapt to be back in the game.
Grosjean confided that the common goal of the two men was to move the team forward and take it as high as possible. Therefore, personal feelings could be set aside.
With Kimi, we want to do everything we can to get Lotus in the best possible position on the grid, and I don’t intend to get distracted by issues I can’t control.
The French driver knows that criticism can be easy and he had indeed touched on this point during the presentation of the E20, stating that his detractors had made him stronger.
«All I want to say to the people who didn’t believe in me is ‘thank you’. Thank you for making me stronger, which helped me to return to Formula 1. Every experience can be turned into a positive if you come out stronger. My first season in F1 was not easy, but now I am better prepared.»
In 2009, within the Renault F1 team, the learning process was difficult, especially since he had joined mid-season to replace Nelson Piquet Jr. He acknowledges not always handling things well, but this experience allowed him to grow, mature, and learn.
In 2009, I made a few mistakes – I was up against Alonso, who was faster, and I didn’t do everything right. To be honest, it was still very useful, and I am better today than I was (at the time). I am living my dream, there is nowhere else I wish to be and I am proud to have had this chance again, added Grosjean.
