In an interview with Autosport today, Lotus driver Romain Grosjean has revealed he had to “try different driving skills” in order to adapt to the 2014 cars.
Last season the cars changed dramatically as, not only were they powered by 1.6-litre turbocharged V6 engines, but a raft of technical rule changes, such as a single exhaust with a central exit, meant downforce was greatly reduced.
With the cars slipping and sliding around corners, Grosjean found the going tough – and that was without the added troubles from Lotus’ disappointing E23. In his interview with Autosport today, Grosjean believes that these factors did not help him extract the pace and performance from his car last season. Grosjean stated the following:-
‘The car and the regulations, a little bit, haven’t suited my driving style. I had to change it at first to get on top of it, and the car was unpredictable when you drive it.
‘I like to understand everything about the braking, turning and exit and then the next lap analyse and improve. Last year, one lap you got oversteer, lap two it’s understeer and then maybe the next lap it’s going to be good.
You can’t understand and analyse things, so you just have to go with the feeling, which Pastor did pretty well.
‘So I have been improving myself in that aspect and I had to try different driving skills. As a driver, purely driving, I think I am able to do more things, but it didn’t reflect in the results.’
It is clear that Grosjean suffered a difficult season last especially as the E23 did not perform as he and the Lotus team would have liked. With the new technical regulations that were introduced last season, Lotus decided on a fundamental approach from all of the other teams which did not help them in any case which led to how the car performed on the track and Grosjean and Maldonado having to adapt their driving styles during a practice session, through qualifying or even during a race to get the best they could out of the car. But last season will surely have helped Grosjean as a driver through developing and adapting his driving skills to the E23 but he also how things can change from season to season too.
Further in his interview with Autosport, Grosjean explains further why he had to adjust his style, with him revealing that while he naturally wants to pick up speed through a corner, the lack of downforce meant he could not. Grosjean added the following:-
‘I like to go very early on the throttle, but this year it wasn’t possible. I had a little less feeling in the front end and I like to brake late and turn late, but this year it didn’t work.
‘It [exhaust blowing] would have made me more confident and I could push more, but things change. There were no blown exhausts in GP2 and they go quick, so I’m not worried. Once everything works consistently and everything is stable, I will produce quick lap times. That’s something I have learned to do [in 2014] and will help for the future.’
Overall, you can understand why Grosjean had to adapt his driving style with the E23 even if he found it challenging and difficult during the 2014 season. Even though Lotus did not provide him the car that he feels he needs that suits his driving style, he did the best that he could with the situation, even if he verbally showed his frustration about the situation.
As Grosjean points out in his interview today, last season he couldn’t place the car exactly to his liking but it is clear that he has learnt a lot from this and this will help him as the Lotus team develop their 2015 car before the start of pre-season testing. And I really hope that this season Grosjean is provided with a competitive, reliable and consistent car for the season ahead that will remind everyone in the paddock why he is a future Grand Prix winner and world champion.
It is imperative that the Lotus team provide Grosjean with the tools to deliver as for me, there are no excuses for the Lotus team anymore; they simply have to deliver. They have the personnel, they have the resources, they have the best power unit on the grid and they also have a driver who is capable of delivering on the track where it matters. If anyone can do the job for Lotus this season, you’d have to place your money with Grosjen and if Lotus cannot provide him with the tools to deliver, then I feel Grosjean could be looking at other options for the 2016 season that can bring him the success he craves and deserves.
2015 is going to be an important year for the Lotus team and also for Grosjean too and the spotlight will be firmly upon them both.
