Lotus: Lopez clarifies the situation and confirms the failure of a deal with Quantum

The winter saga between Lotus and the Pakistani consortium Quantum has officially come to an end. Gérard Lopez, founder of Genii and owner of the Lotus team, announced the end of negotiations in an interview with the German newspaper Auto motor und Sport: « The money never arrived from Quantum. We have now stopped the discussions. For 2014, we have the budget from our new sponsor PDVSA. » The latter, a Venezuelan oil company, is of course the main sponsor of the team’s new driver, Pastor Maldonado.

Throughout the 2013 season, Lotus’s cash flow problems stirred the paddock, culminating in the split between the team and its lead driver, Kimi Räikkönen, who publicly aired his unpaid wages. Recently, Davide Valsecchi, the test driver last year, also claimed not to have been paid: “I haven’t been paid yet, but I’m convinced that as soon as they are able, they will settle their debt,” the Italian driver, who might consider turning to the IndyCar championship due to lack of budget to bring to Formula 1, stated recently.

Lopez, however, certifies that Räikkönen has received a portion of his salary since: « Kimi has received part of his salary, and he will get the rest. We still have 140 million euros in debt. Andy Ruhan, my new partner, has nonetheless acquired 2% of the team’s shares, which still belongs 98% to Genii. »

Buoyed by a new financial stability, Lotus calmly looked forward to 2014, and Lopez justifies his team’s decision not to be present at the first tests of the season in Jerez: « We think it’s better to use the coming weeks to work in the wind tunnel. We clearly considered going to Jerez with the 2013 car to work on the tires. The engineers ultimately refused. The track has a special coating, and you can’t learn much from it. It would be a waste of time. We are very satisfied with the development of our car, which will probably be slightly different from the others. »

Furthermore, he also refutes any problem with Renault: « We have worked for a long time to ensure the contract is ideal. Lotus is not just a customer at Renault. Therefore, we have tried to agree so that it is more than just an engine supplier. This delayed the negotiations. »

Lopez is also confident in his driver duo, which he believes to be one of the most performance-oriented on the grid: « Two years ago, I might have said the pair is fast but explosive. Today, it’s different. Romain is, for me, one of the four fastest drivers, maybe even in the top three. He is now mentally strong. Pastor still needs to take another step. He is very fast. We know him very well. He needs to learn that a Grand Prix isn’t just about a few fast laps. He needs to better control his speed. »