Team Lotus: Up and down, but pretty pleased overall

Team Lotus: Up and down, but pretty pleased overall

It was quite a rollercoaster Spanish GP for Team Lotus. Saturday was a high, when Kovalainen entered Q2 and qualified 15th, but it didn’t quite pay off in the end, although they had quite a strong start to the race. Heikki reflects:

“It’s a real shame my afternoon came to an end like that. I made a mistake on the entry to turn four and went off but up until that point the race was pretty good. Both Jarno and I were right in the mix early on and we were fighting in the midfield for a lot of the race but then the tyres started to go off and the early pace wasn’t there for the later stages of the afternoon.

“Maybe we should have pitted earlier on but we’ve still learnt a lot from this weekend and can take that to Monaco where I think it will be a very interesting weekend for everyone,” he said.

Team Lotus: Up and down, but pretty pleased overall

“Heikki made a small mistake on lap 52 and then Jarno had a cracked exhaust which meant we had to keep an eye on that, but overall we have made real progress this weekend and have amassed a great deal of data on the new package that will help us learn how to get the most out of all the changes, so it is another positive weekend for the whole team,” said Mike Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer.

Deputy Team Principal Kamarudin Meranun sounded quite upbeat too: “There are a number of positives to take from this afternoon – we were able to fight with the established teams and have shown that we are consistently improving, little by little. That is the key goal for this year and we keep moving forward so we leave Spain pretty pleased overall.”

Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.

10% discount when you renew your car insurance

Compare prices between different insurer providers and use the promo code 'PAULTAN10' when you make your payment to save the most on your car insurance renewal compared to other competing services.

Car Insurance

Danny Tan

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

 

Comments

  • Nandos on May 23, 2011 at 8:14 am

    How come Tony did not say anything? He is usually “absolutely delighted” regardless of what happened on the track.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • VoidDance on May 23, 2011 at 10:55 am

      He did said a few things on his Twitter;

      “Good heikki is okay. Main thing. Good weekend. Lots to learn. Good pace. Better relaibility. Long way to go. But learning. Slow but sure.”

      “What a 20 months. Lots to learn but things getting competitive. We have to be smarter and look at strategy all the time. Heikki was pushing hard hence error. Jarno had best race ever. Heikki best qualifying.”

      We are good at complaining every time. But there are people who keep on going and strive to be better rather than sit down and babbling without end on how this and that should work.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • this team is a joke
    drop that name already
    it’s a shame for a minardi wannabe wearing a legendary name

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • lalaz on May 23, 2011 at 6:01 pm

      siok sendiri, pleased overall, hahahahahahahah

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Bujang Lapuk on May 24, 2011 at 8:09 am

      Everyone starts somewhere. If they put enough effort (and I believe they can) and bring in the right people, they’ll reach their goals.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • pakka on May 23, 2011 at 9:18 am

    Nice. It’s heartening to hear real progress than bickering for a name.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Progress…

    Slow, but nevertheless, its still progress…

    Rome wasn’t built in a day, they say…

    Good job for making it into Q2…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • racefans on May 23, 2011 at 9:32 am

    the deputy statement sounds more logical than the team principal himself :)
    i like the words “little by little” rather than “being in the midfield”

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • perhaps plenty of works has to be done by this team.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Chris on May 23, 2011 at 10:09 am

    what a joke this team is…lets rename yourself as minardi eh?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • anand on May 23, 2011 at 12:16 pm

    stop following this team since they name to team lotus,i had enough of it

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • tokpaya on May 23, 2011 at 12:45 pm

    would have seen it coming from the qualification, but good to hear that they do not sound arrogant as before.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • sproc45 on May 23, 2011 at 1:25 pm

    Too much publicity. Talk less, work more.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • ezracopters on May 23, 2011 at 10:03 pm

    should they want us Malaysian to support em’ openly, maybe those in TL PR should drop Tony and appointing Kamarudin Meranun as TL official PR representative. he sound more sense and more logical that the boss himself.

    All the best in Monaco..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

Add a comment

required

required