أرشيف وسم ‘ Enstone ’

Posted on Friday, June 22, 2012

Raikkonen denies Lotus rift

Kimi Raikkonen has hit back at reports he is out of favour at Lotus. The 2007 world champion's return to Formula 1 this year initially went smoothly, but he has struggled more recently while newcomer teammate Romain Grosjean almost won the recent Canadian grand prix. Not only that, there are reports his Enstone based employer is losing patience with the 32-year-old Finn's attitude, especially regarding his demands for a better steering system and a rumoured rift over a rallying ban. "I don't know where you […]

Posted on Monday, June 18, 2012

Qualifying key to victory for Lotus says Grosjean

Victory will be within Lotus' grasp if the Enstone based team can improve its qualifying pace. Romain Grosjean finished within sight of Lewis Hamilton in Canada earlier this month, having qualified only seventh. Also driven this year by 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen, a black and gold E20 has not started a single grand prix from the front row of the grid in 2012. But reigning GP2 champion Grosjean insists that the difference between the performance of the Lotus and the very best cars in […]

Posted on Thursday, June 14, 2012

Villeneuve thinks Lotus might 'drop' Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen's seat at Lotus might not be secure, according to 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve. Villeneuve, whilst attending last weekend's Canadian grand prix at the Montreal circuit named after his legendary father, described Lotus' black and gold E20 car as "amazing". The French Canadian suggested that with a top driver at the wheel, the Enstone based team might even be leading the world championship. But what about Raikkonen? As the 2007 world champion who this season has made a widely-hailed F1 comeback, isn't the […]

Posted on Sunday, June 10, 2012

Bad news chasing Lotus team at present

There is little good news to report about the Lotus F1 team at present. The UK financial website thisismoney.co.uk reports that the Enstone based team has recorded a $32 million pre-tax loss for last year. It is however an improvement on the $63 million loss of 2010. But the news of the latest loss followed the dismissal by the team's former sponsor Group Lotus of its controversial chief executive Dany Bahar. Business journalist Christian Sylt said Group Lotus' Malaysian owner DRB-Hicom is contemplating "whether to […]

Posted on Friday, June 1, 2012

Steering issue creating Lotus-Raikkonen rift

The mere issue of 'steering' risks creating a rift between Lotus and its star driver Kimi Raikkonen. The 2007 world champion has complained about the steering system aboard the black and gold E20 from his very first lap this season. For Monaco, the team debuted a special system tailored to the Finn's needs, but it lasted just a single out-lap on Thursday morning. "He was asked to consider running the session with it as it was (but) he refused and took no further part", Sky […]

Posted on Monday, May 28, 2012

Lotus remains race favourite for Canada says Alguersuari

Yet another weekend has passed in which the pre-race favourite, Lotus, failed to deliver. But Jaime Alguersuari thinks the Enstone based team remains poised to shine in the very near future. "From my point of view, I still believe that they have the most competitive package, both mechanically and aerodynamically," said the former Toro Rosso driver. "They have great traction and very little degradation of the rear tyres. It is unfortunate that here they were not able to get the most from it but you […]

Posted on Friday, May 25, 2012

Lotus says no to Raikkonen's rally request

Lotus has refused Kimi Raikkonen permission to contest this year's Rally Finland. The Finn, who returned to Formula One in 2012 after two years in world rallying, admitted this week he wanted to do the Finnish rally in August but "you'll have to ask the team if it fits in my contract". "Contractually he cannot do it. End of story," Lotus team boss Eric Boullier told Reuters in Monaco. Boullier admitted the fact the Enstone based team's former regular driver, Robert Kubica, was seriously injured […]

Posted on Sunday, May 13, 2012

Raikkonen: We could have won

Kimi Raikkonen has voiced his dissatisfaction at only finishing the Spanish Grand Prix 3rd, with the former World Champion adamant that he could’ve won the race had the opening few laps gone his way. At the start, the ‘Iceman’ tried a move around the outside into turn 1, but after hitting the limiter in fifth gear, Raikkonen failed to make the move stick. Towards the end of the race, Kimi Raikkonen began reeling in the leading duo of Pastor Maldonado and Fernando Alonso at a […]

Posted on Saturday, May 12, 2012

Raikkonen: Williams also 'pretty good' 2012 option

Kimi Raikkonen has admitted his failed negotiations with Williams ultimately turned out for the better. When he decided to try to return to F1 this year, the 2007 world champion negotiated at length with Williams. When those talks faltered, he turned to his second option, and quickly came to agreement with the former Renault team Lotus. The Enstone based team has been the surprise of the 2012 season so far, and in Barcelona Finn Raikkonen is arguably the overall favourite. He was asked by Turun […]

Posted on Saturday, May 12, 2012

Alonso: Grosjean can win grands prix

Romain Grosjean is a potential grand prix winner. That is the claim of the Frenchman's first F1 teammate Fernando Alonso, who shared the Renault team with Grosjean in 2009. The Enstone based team, however, was imploding amid the crashgate scandal, and Grosjean struggled to perform after being drafted in to replace the sacked Nelson Piquet. He lost the drive at the end of the season and then found himself in the odd situation of farewelling his girlfriend, the French F1 presenter Marion Jolles, as she […]

Posted on Thursday, April 26, 2012

Genii Capital considering buying Group Lotus

Rumours that F1 team owner Genii is contemplating buying the Group Lotus sports car company are continuing to gain steam. That is despite Genii's Gerard Lopez confirming recently that the Enstone based team has ended its sponsorship deal with the carmaker, even though the team will continue to carry the Lotus name. But subsequent media reports indicate that the newly Malaysian conglomerate DRB-Hicom owned Group Lotus is for sale. "Genii ... is thought to be interested, and its boss, Gerard Lopez, is said to have […]

Posted on Thursday, April 12, 2012

Lotus preparing F-duct protest in China

Two publications are reporting strong rumours that Lotus is preparing an official protest against Mercedes' controversial F-duct system. Germany's specialist Auto Motor und Sport said the Enstone based team could file the protest in Shanghai on Thursday, following stalemate meetings last week between technical directors and the FIA's Charlie Whiting. The report said Red Bull has gone "surprisingly quiet" on the F-duct issue, "probably because they have been working on their own system". "Even Sauber's engineers are thinking about how to integrate the system on […]