Lotus wants to put pressure on Ferrari and distance themselves from McLaren

Although the Lotus F1 Team had to “settle” for fifth and sixth places at the finish of the British Grand Prix, Eric Boullier, director of the British team, has a positive outlook but believes there is still work to be done to achieve that first victory that has eluded the Enstone men since the start of the season: « Our cars set the two fastest laps of the race, both of our drivers scored points, and we retained third place in the Constructors’ Championship… but we expected better. Except for the difficult weather conditions, which were the same for everyone, part of the problem lay, once again, in our starting positions. We had the performance to win, but the wrong spot on the grid! »

If Kimi Räikkönen believes, after Silverstone, that his team is close to fully exploiting the performance of the Lotus E20, Romain Grosjean, who was involved in a collision with Paul di Resta at the beginning of the race, relegating him to the back of the pack, considers he delivered one of his best races along with Canada: « Climbing from last to sixth place was fantastic. The car was working incredibly well. And once again, we managed something with the tires that no one else could, in my opinion. These are very good points. Now, we need to put everything together. We’ve been saying it for a while, but I’m sure it will come. If we can qualify well, on one of the first two rows, then I think we’ll be in a position to win. »

Precisely, at Hockenheim, Kimi Räikkönen believes that Lotus has certain advantages: « The car can make a big difference, and fortunately, ours is good. You need good traction out of the corners. If you lack rear grip, it’s hard to find the performance to compete for the top spots. » For his part, James Allison, the technical director of the team, believes that Lotus is now better in qualifying than recent Grand Prix results might suggest, especially in Great Britain: « Silverstone did not do us justice. Considering our performances in Free Practice 3, we could aim for the first or second row, for sure. Since the qualifying was disrupted by rain, I don’t think definitive conclusions should be drawn. We are improving in qualifying and will be in the fight for the first two rows at Hockenheim. […] Our car is notoriously gentle on its tires. This is a good overall feature, but it penalizes us a bit on a single lap. However, throughout the season, we have learned how to make the most of this characteristic and we hope our qualifying performances will improve. »

At Hockenheim, securing a good position on the starting grid is all the more important because overtaking can be difficult, according to Kimi Räikkönen: « The last time I came to Hockenheim, in 2008, it was difficult to overtake here. Not as complicated as on some circuits, but not easy at all. This year, with the tires, KERS, and DRS, it should be easier, especially if we are better than the competition with the tires. At Hockenheim, not everything depends on qualifications, but it obviously makes life easier. » Romain Grosjean also believes there will be overtaking on the German circuit: « I believe the possibilities for overtaking are high. We need to see the DRS zone, but the layout is favorable and the races are always interesting here. I’m sure we will have a good race and we can achieve a great result. »

Precisely, regarding the objective, Kimi Räikkönen believes there is no reason why we shouldn’t aim for the podium, an opinion shared by Eric Boullier: “Victory could seem like an achievable target, considering our recent performance level. That said, aiming for a podium might also be sensible. I think we need to focus on the operational side and ensure our preparation is perfect. Our car has not been the most reliable since Montreal, experiencing KERS issues, differential, alternator, and gearbox troubles. We are doing everything to fix these faults. At Silverstone, we significantly improved our pit stops with new procedures and parts. At Hockenheim, we will be introducing new development parts on Friday. As you can see, we are continuing to move forward. We are not neglecting any avenue and want to have a much better second half of the season. James Allison, for his part, wants to put pressure on Ferrari for the second place in the championship… and perhaps also gain some distance over McLaren in the process.”

For his part, currently on an excellent streak, Romain Grosjean approaches Hockenheim with great enthusiasm: « I love this circuit, I’ve raced here several times. In fact, one of my first single-seater races took place here, in Formula Renault 1.6, in 2003. Then, I raced eight times in Formula 3 because we came here twice a year in the F3 Euro Series. I have fond memories and I can’t wait to return to Hockenheim. We hope to have some upgrades and be able to achieve pole position, victory, and fastest lap! The perfect weekend! » However, the Franco-Swiss has no chance of starting from pole position as his team was forced to change the gearbox after Silverstone: « Unfortunately, this means Romain will incur a five-place grid penalty at Hockenheim. But he showed at Silverstone that starting from behind doesn’t prevent him from fighting back at the front, » relativizes James Allison.

If the weather, which is forecasted to be clear for this weekend, should only offer confidence to the men of Enstone, still according to James Allison, Kimi Räikkönen remembers that Germany has not always smiled upon him: “I don’t know. Maybe I did something wrong in a previous life? Yet I’ve always liked racing in Germany. But luck has never been on my side here, each time, a problem has prevented me from winning. I’ve achieved four pole positions, so I am fast on German soil. But I’ve accumulated six retirements beyond my control. The races I’ve participated in Germany have never met my expectations, whether at Hockenheim or Nürburgring. I like both and I’ve always been competitive there. Maybe it will eventually come this year.”

To achieve this, the Finn hopes the weather forecasts will be accurate: « It’s usually very hot in Hockenheim and everyone has problems with the tires. Obviously, a hot climate suits our car well. It prefers high temperatures and over long stints, it’s gentle on its tires. We need a real summer in Hockenheim. » On the other hand, while Romain Grosjean has nothing against the rain, he nevertheless hopes « that summer will accompany us »: « I prefer weather like Valencia’s, sunny every day! There’s no need to worry about visor choice, clothing, and so on… »

But if the Lotus E20 seems particularly at ease under high temperatures, it also suffered, especially in Valencia where Romain Grosjean, then a solid second, was forced to retire due to an alternator failure, a problem that should not occur again according to James Allison: Renault Sport reacted immediately and took appropriate measures. They also advised us to use the car slightly differently to make the alternator’s task easier. Based on all this, I am practically sure that we have reached a zone where the alternator operates without problems. But Viry is not going to rest on this. They will continue to scrutinize everything until they have absolute certainty that the part is bulletproof. This could take another one or two races.