Romain Grosjean believes his new approach is already evident

The Lotus driver came under fire towards the end of 2012 for getting caught up in incidents, most notably the first corner crash at the Belgian Grand Prix which earned him a one-race ban.

Grosjean held onto his drive for this year, but team management worked hard to get him to refine his approach to racing for his second full season in Formula 1.

The Frenchman admitted that while he cannot judge his new approach to on-track battles yet, he feels he has shown a new maturity in this year's tests.

"I think I've already changed," he said when asked by AUTOSPORT about his new mentality.

"Last year I was jumping in the car in testing and trying to go as fast as I could. This year I am trying to get as much knowledge as I can.

"It's a bit different. I know where we can work and what we can do. And yeah, hopefully the risk management will be different."

Grosjean said it was natural for his approach to change for his second season as he now has a much better understanding of life as a Formula 1 driver.

"This year I am not discovering everything for the first time. That is very different," he said.

"This is not my first full season anymore so I know what I am going to face.

"I know how to rest between the races, and the small things that make a lot of different in a 19 or 20 race year.

"When you discover things sometimes you do the mistakes. Hopefully I know that now and I'm not going to do the same again."