Lotus ready to push on with developments until later in the season
Lotus is prepared to push on with developments of its E20 much further into the campaign than it has its previous cars, as it eyes a full-on assault on the world championship
With the outfit's double podium finish in Hungary leaving rivals in no doubt that Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean are a serious threat for victory, Lotus itself thinks there is no reason why it cannot be chasing the ultimate prize this year.
Technical director James Allison told Sky Sports News on Friday that his outfit has realised that its form in recent years suffered from it electing to shift its resource on to the following year's cars - something it is not intending to do this season.
"One of the things that our team has got a little bit wrong in the last couple of seasons is that we have been too ready to switch over to the new car a little bit too soon," he said.
"So we started this year consciously intending to develop this one a bit longer than normal."
Although Raikkonen is 48 points adrift of points leader Fernando Alonso, Allison thinks there is everything to play for in the championship - especially with a driver capable of securing 225 points over the remainder of the season.
When asked about the chances of Raikkonen being champion, Allison said: "Why not? There are an awful lot of points for coming first and there are a lot of races to be done. The lead is minuscule compared to the points available."
Share Or Save This Story
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Jon Noble: An unfair perception or a genuine concern? Lifting the lid on Red Bull’s Tsunoda scepticism
The key moments in Renault's F1 history as it bids farewell
What F1 history tells us about three-way title deciders
Was short-lived Lotus 76 simply a lame duck or never given a fair crack of the whip?
How much time has Aston Martin gained with its F1 Hungarian GP update?
Antonelli hit with grid drop for yellow flag infringement in F1 Hungarian GP qualifying
Hamilton slapped with grid drop for impeding Piastri in F1 Hungarian GP qualifying
Russell to undergo Mercedes engine change but avoids F1 Hungarian GP grid drop
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments