Kovalainen or Kobayashi to replace Grosjean at Lotus

What future for Romain Grosjean at Lotus? Although Gérard Lopez, owner of the British team, told the newspaper L’Equipe this week that his desire is to see Romain in the car, it remains that Lotus intends to take time to reflect. Thus, even though the Luxembourg businessman indicates that only Romain Grosjean holds the keys to secure his future in black and gold, it remains that the Frenchman has still not been confirmed alongside Kimi Räikkönen and that, in his current position, his seat is attracting interest.

On the Enstone side, and as with many teams, the issue is primarily financial. While the French driver has the support of his leaders, notably Eric Boullier and Total, the fact remains that due to errors mostly attributable to him, he has cost the team valuable points in their hopes of competing for the podium in the constructors’ championship, where ten million dollars separate fourth from third place in the distribution of Formula 1 revenue. Therefore, what the Lotus team expects from its drivers is a return on investment, as Gérard Lopez explains to Turun Sanomat using Räikkönen as an example: « Kimi’s arrival comes at a cost for us, but on the other hand, he helps us achieve more success in the constructors’ championship, bringing even more money into the team. » Consequently, the Lotus team expects Romain Grosjean to provide more guarantees while other drivers on the market seem potentially capable of doing so.

Thus, according to the Finnish television channel MTV3, Heikki Kovalainen wants to replace Grosjean. Before the Brazilian Grand Prix, the current Caterham driver, who knows the Enstone team well having made his debut there in 2007, acknowledged that the situation was quite delicate for him, as Charles Pic has been confirmed for 2013 without further details about who will occupy the other seat at Caterham. For the Finn, who has never hidden his desire this season to find a more prominent place, even going as far as testing the waters at Maranello to replace Felipe Massa, the problem is primarily financial, as most of the currently available drivers on the market are likely to bring money along with their talent: “We are looking at other options, but even those require money and I don’t want to go in that direction. I told my management not to actively look for money. I don’t think it leads to anything. If you have strong financial backing like Santander and they come with you to see the teams, then that’s something different, but raising money for just one season… for me it doesn’t make sense. That’s the current situation in Formula 1 and it might not be tailored for me. So there might not be a place for me next season, and there is nothing I can do about it.”

If he claims to maintain good relations with the Caterham team to the point of considering the possibility of staying with Leafield next season, the native of Suomussalmi would nonetheless explore other options—including rallying—even if one might question the interest the Lotus F1 Team and its partners would have in recruiting another Finnish driver when Kimi Räikkönen already provides them with considerable visibility in the land of a thousand lakes and beyond. However, Heikki Kovalainen’s experience and solid results despite one of the less competitive cars on the grid could be a certain guarantee for a team aiming to challenge the leading teams like Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren in the long term.

But following the official announcement of Nico Hülkenberg and Esteban Gutiérrez at Sauber, Kamui Kobayashi is another serious contender, according to the Turun Sanomat. The man with 60 Grand Prix races could indeed open the doors to Japan for the British team and its partners. Moreover, determined to continue his career in Formula 1, the Amagasaki native has launched a major crowdfunding campaign on the Internet to secure a seat for 2013. This initiative has been successful as it has already allowed him to raise over €1,200,000, which he commits to refund if he does not secure a spot for the next season.

But the decision by Lotus could also depend on behind-the-scenes changes since Livio Oricchio, a correspondent for the Brazilian newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo, claims that Lotus is in discussions with a group of investors who could promote a very controversial new team manager, with the Brazilian, however, removing the name Flavio Briatore from the list of contenders. If there were indeed a change at the head of the Enstone-based team, Romain Grosjean would likely lose one of his main supporters and his place at Lotus.