View the Post on the BlogAs the F1 silly season rumours are in full swing, and Romain Grosjean had another mixed weekend at the Hungaroring, question marks are still out on the future of the Lotus driver. He was undoubtedly quick in the race, but once again a careless pass on Button and squeezing himself just outside of track limits against Massa meant his weekend was overshadowed by mistakes again.
As Lotus will be looking at their driving line-up for next season, the jury is still out: should Grosjean stay?
He is usually very much on the pace, and like several instances last year, his qualifying pace is often much more promising than that of Kimi Räikkönen: at Budapest he proved this once again. But with so many mistakes tarnishing his reputation, and losing valuable points, can they really afford to keep him in the car?
Eric Boullier has been keen to keep consistency within the team, and there is a lot to be said for maintaining a solid driver line-up and team organisation going into a season with many changes, but the reality of the situation is that there is much more potential out there for Lotus than just the hit and miss exploits of the Frenchman.
The situation for Lotus is simple: they can be championship contenders. Kimi is fighting hard to stay in the hunt for the driver’s championship, and with a solid second driver who can score as consistently as Kimi, and gain regular podiums, then they have a real chance of challenging for the constructor’s championship.
Nico Hulkenberg has been linked to the team, and with the German seeming more and more unlikely to stay at Sauber next year, coupled with his proven track record (many believe he will be a future champ), surely he is a better option? Or the team already have the hugely talented Davide Valsecchi, last year’s GP2 champion who is the team’s third driver and has proved himself in two young driver tests for the team.
What is undeniable is that the Lotus car this year is a regular podium sitting car, and on several weekends could be a race winner too. Grosjean has not performed to the car’s level this year, and with a team that is at the front, it’s puzzling that his performance should be considered acceptable. But perhaps more crucially, with his mistakes still seemingly a part of his racing, the team really can’t afford to carry him much longer if he can’t start putting in some consistency. If Kimi does go to Red Bull, can Lotus seriously expect Grosjean to be their ‘lead’ driver?
Without question Grosjean is quick, and perhaps at a smaller team his erratic behavior might be accepted for his natural speed, but at a top team like Lotus, you would have to say, with a season and a half in their cockpit (that’s not including his first half-season stint with Renault in 2009) that he hasn't done enough to retain that top-level drive, and with so many other promising, and arguably better drivers waiting, perhaps it is time for Lotus to move on without him.
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