Lotus F1 Team say Pastor Maldonado’s retirement at the Belgian Grand Prix was ‘self-inflicted’ and that he was to blame for it.
Lotus Trackside Operations Director Alan Permane revealed that Maldonado damaged his car by running off track at Eau Rouge.
“Maldonado’s retirement was self-inflicted,” said Permane. “He had a huge off at Eau Rouge. That damaged the clutch control system.
“The valves were damaged and that locked his clutch out. That’s why he couldn’t get back.”
Maldonado would have been disappointed to retire after seeing his teammate finish on the podium, in third. The Venezuelan’s attention turns to the Italian Grand Prix where Lotus will expect to be competitive once again.
“We had been doing a great job this weekend, especially yesterday,” said Maldonado. “The car was feeling very good, very competitive and I had a good race start.
“We had an issue with the drive of the car which the team are investigating. I’m disappointed about the issue we had today but that’s racing sometimes.
“We are keeping focussed for the next race now and Romain has shown what is possible. I love Italy and Monza so I’ll be doing everything I can for a strong result there.”
