Friday: Lotus would have wanted more rain tires
The weather turned out to be very British, and with teams having a limited stock of rain tires, the Friday sessions experienced very quiet moments. Lotus was no exception, especially in Free Practice 2 where Romain Grosjean didn't set a single timed lap.
Romain Grosjean – 1st and 21st:
« It wasn’t the most productive day due to the weather conditions, but FP1 went quite well nevertheless. The car seems good and consistent. We tested some new aerodynamic parts that worked quite well. I also learned that the old part of the circuit has a bit more grip than the new part. At the end of FP1 this morning, it was incredibly wet and the conditions were the same at the start of FP2, so we had to wait and be patient. I would have liked to run more, but because of the tire regulations, we didn’t want to exhaust our allocation of Wet tires since more rain is expected on Saturday and Sunday. We considered the Intermediate tires, but the track wasn’t dry enough, so we couldn’t do many laps this afternoon. These conditions are unfortunate for the fans who came to see us today, but we always appreciate their support. »
Kimi Räikkönen – 16th and 8th:
« It was wet. It’s a shame not to have more Rain tires to have more testing time, but if it rains throughout the weekend, everyone tries to preserve their [tire] allocation. We were able to test some things, so it wasn’t a total waste of time. It was interesting to see the new section of the circuit; it’s just a few corners so it doesn’t make too much of a difference on a lap. Hopefully tomorrow, the weather will be a bit better. Even if it’s still wet, everyone will go out for practice and qualifying, so we should see a drier line emerge. When there are only a few cars running, it doesn’t happen, and there’s a much higher chance of aquaplaning, but with everyone out, it should be much better. »
