’A lot more to come’ from Lotus

Romain Grosjean says there is “a lot more to come” from Lotus after not getting the chance to show the team’s true potential in Australia.

Pastor Maldonado crashed out on the first lap of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, with Grosjean then retiring at the end of the same lap due to a charge air system problem. With both cars qualifying in the top 10 Lotus was able to show the gains it has made since 2014 but Grosjean says there is big potential within the package to move further forward.

“It’s still early days, but it’s clear we’ve all got a lot of work to do to get to the level of the Mercedes,” Grosjean said. “Behind them the pack is much closer. For us at Lotus F1 Team we know it’s the first season with a new engine supplier so we’re still learning about the potential. Certainly, the E23 has a lot more to come and it’s going to be very exciting working with everyone at Enstone to develop the car yet further.”

Technical director Nick Chester agreed there is more to come from the car, saying the base of the E23 is a strong one to improve on.

“A fair bit I’d say. It’s a brand new car and there is quite a lot of aero development work to do; we will be pushing developments all through the year for it,” Chester said. “We are happy as we have a good platform to work from. The drivers enjoy driving the E23; they find it is a consistent car they are able to push to the limit quite well. It’s great to have this basis to work from as it means that we can focus on adding performance.”

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