Source: formula1.com
When this season started team principal Eric Boullier dreamed that Lotus would finish third in the constructors’ standings. Boullier’s dream has – for now, at least – become a reality but with 11 races still to go, anything could still happen. And the Frenchman knows his team must improve their car’s qualifying form if they are to take advantage of its excellent race pace and claim victory this year. He discusses this, drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean and much more…
Selected questions and answers:
Q: What will be your homework for the next races? Where can you improve?
EB: We have a big upgrade we would like to see working on the car after the shutdown. So you could call this race some kind of test. The most visible change has been the new wing on Kimi’s car but there are also a number of changes on Romain’s car. And we want to see what these changes will bring us in terms of race pace. From Spa until the end of the season we hope that we will have the whole package up and running and it will help us defend our position.
Q: You just mentioned the new wing on Raikkonen’s car. Why did you pick the Finn to test the new package?
EB: Both cars and both drivers are treated exactly the same. Romain had a new front and rear wing in Valencia and Silverstone and now it was Kimi’s turn for something new. We decide that randomly.
Q: Everybody expects Lotus to win sooner rather than later. Which of your two guys do you see as the most likely to clinch victory?
EB: I don’t know. On paper Kimi is delivering more in terms of points and race finishes so he could be the first one to win. But I am pretty sure that in the end both are capable.
Q: You just said that you had favoured race pace over qualifying pace. Grosjean has been faster than Raikkonen several times in qualifying but Raikkonen has scored more points. Why is that?
EB: Sometimes it is just by accident and sometimes it is because Romain’s driving style is a little bit more aggressive than that of Kimi and that is only because we struggle to get his tyres up to temperature. Once we can combine Kimi’s qualifying and Romain’s race pace we should be in good shape.
Q: It’s mid-season and you know the strengths and weaknesses of Raikkonen and Grosjean now. Can you talk us through them?
EB: I don’t see much of a downside to Kimi to be honest. He came back to his speed level very quickly. I think he struggled a little bit with the strength and pushiness of the others and also with getting back into the Formula One format over weekends. But that is all history. Now he is there – and I would not be surprised if he won tomorrow. Romain is still building himself up. Many see him as a ‘fake’ rookie but I would disagree with that. Even if he did seven races two years ago he never had a real chance to bloom, so for me he is still in his first year. He is making mistakes – of course – because he is a youngster. But the good news is that he never repeats a mistake! He is learning, listening and getting stronger with every race.
Q: That sounds like there are almost no weaknesses and a lot of strengths…
EB: Yes. I think I have one of the best driver line-ups on the grid. They are fast and complement each other. Character-wise they are very different. It is not about liking or hating each other but respecting each other – and they do.
Q: You say that you have one of the best driver pairings on the grid. Who would you say has an equally good line-up?
EB: It looks like the Red Bull pair. But on the other hand you have to consider that there has been a huge shake-up at our team over the last two years and that has not happened at any of the other big teams. Now that the dust has settled and we are all moving in the same direction we now need some stability. If you take Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren or Mercedes they have had the same driver line-up for three years and this is what we are missing this year. We are missing stability. But first you have to build it.
Q: You said you could imagine Raikkonen winning the race, even from P10. What has to happen for him to win?
EB: First of all, there is no such thing as the perfect race weekend so you have to make the best of what you have. We are still learning to get the most out of our drivers but it is coming and Kimi is finding his way. Our car is fast enough in the race – so let’s see how it goes.
FUCK ISRAEL 