Lotus F1 Team
Heikki Kovalainen endured a trouble free day during practice for the United States Grand Prix as he returned to track action and set the fifth fastest time in second practice.
Kovalainen, who is replacing the injured Kimi Raikkonen at Lotus, said that he had no major issues with the car.
"It’s been a pretty smooth landing, joining Lotus F1 Team. We’ve had no major issues on track and we just need to keep chipping away to see how good we can get the car for Saturday and Sunday," he said.
"We lost a bit of track time in the morning, but the car balance was reasonably good straight away. I was able to settle in and work immediately on the setup and tyre work. All the procedures and routines are quite similar up and down the pit lane, plus I’m familiar with all the systems from driving with a Renault engine already this year and previously, so it was a pretty straight-forward day."
Team-mate Romain Grosjean was eighth quickest and says improving braking in low fuel conditions is his main target.
"We struggled a bit to get the brakes exactly as I want them on low fuel, but once that’s sorted we should be well placed for tomorrow," he said.
"Certainly the car feels good on the long runs so it’s a positive start to the weekend."
