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Lotus' Romain Grosjean has admitted to being frustrated with the way he has started his 2013 campaign.
Whilst teammate Kimi Raikkonen lies second in the driver's championship with 49 points from the three opening races, Grosjean has scored just 11 after struggling to match the 2007 world champion.
The Frenchman believes the set-up difficulties he is enduring with team's E21 car are the cause of the difference in performance, but he insists he is working closely with his engineers to get on top of the issue.
“I would be lying if I said the car is exactly where I want it and we are having quite an adventure to get the setup and feeling from the car how we want it,” said Grosjean.
“This is very frustrating for a driver, as you want your car to be obedient. It's something we really want to get on top of as quickly as possible. I'm spending a lot of time with my engineers and we're all working hard to make improvements,” he concluded.
Lotus, however, praised Grosjean's efforts this year and has admitted it needs to do a better job to help the Frenchman get the most from a ‘tricky' car.
“What seems to be clear [from Kimi's weekends] is that the car is a tricky little beast to get just right,” said Lotus' technical director, James Allison, in a Q&A with Formula1.com.
“The truth is that it's certainly not Romain causing the problem. Romain is fast, smooth and good at looking after tyres, however we have not yet managed to give him a consistent car that lets him bring his talent to bear. It's not him; it's that we haven't got it quite right for him yet.”
In 2012, Grosjean beat his teammate 10-9 in qualifying, despite finishing 111 points behind Raikkonen in the driver's standings.
Whilst teammate Kimi Raikkonen lies second in the driver's championship with 49 points from the three opening races, Grosjean has scored just 11 after struggling to match the 2007 world champion.
The Frenchman believes the set-up difficulties he is enduring with team's E21 car are the cause of the difference in performance, but he insists he is working closely with his engineers to get on top of the issue.
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| Photo: Lotus F1 Team |
“I would be lying if I said the car is exactly where I want it and we are having quite an adventure to get the setup and feeling from the car how we want it,” said Grosjean.
“This is very frustrating for a driver, as you want your car to be obedient. It's something we really want to get on top of as quickly as possible. I'm spending a lot of time with my engineers and we're all working hard to make improvements,” he concluded.
Lotus, however, praised Grosjean's efforts this year and has admitted it needs to do a better job to help the Frenchman get the most from a ‘tricky' car.
“What seems to be clear [from Kimi's weekends] is that the car is a tricky little beast to get just right,” said Lotus' technical director, James Allison, in a Q&A with Formula1.com.
“The truth is that it's certainly not Romain causing the problem. Romain is fast, smooth and good at looking after tyres, however we have not yet managed to give him a consistent car that lets him bring his talent to bear. It's not him; it's that we haven't got it quite right for him yet.”
In 2012, Grosjean beat his teammate 10-9 in qualifying, despite finishing 111 points behind Raikkonen in the driver's standings.