DECEMBER 9, 2011

Lotus Renault signs Romain Grosjean for second seat

Frenchman Romain Grosjean has been signed to drive for Lotus Renault in 2012, to partner Kimi Raikkonen.

Frenchman Romain Grosjean has been signed to drive for Lotus Renault in 2012, partnering Kimi Raikkonen.

There are indications that the French oil company Total helped orchestrate the deal, and has extended their sponsorship deal for two more years.

The signing of Raikkonen and Grosjean are clear indications that the team is in a stronger financial position than before to be able to hire both drivers on merit - replacing it's two current drivers, Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna, who were bringing substancial sponsorship to the team.

Grosjean, signed as a test driver in 2008, and then moved to a race seat 2009 after Nelson Piquet Jr. was fired by the team midseason, but had a difficult time adapting to the car, and was passed over for the race seat the following season - taken by the well-financed Petrov instead. The 25-year-old continued to rebuild his career, winning the GP2 series this past season, adding to his previously titles in the F3 Euroseries and GP2 Asia series.

Romain Grosjean said, "I am thrilled to be one of the team's race drivers in 2012. There's a big grin on my face at the prospect of getting behind the wheel of next year's car, and I feel very privileged to be given this opportunity. To be racing alongside a former world champion and someone who is hungry and returning to Formula 1 will be a great experience, and I'm sure will help raise my level of performance too. I feel that my successful season in GP2 Series has helped me mature a lot, and I am a much more complete driver than I was last time I was competing in this sport. Returning to Enstone as a race driver feels like coming home. I will not disappoint and I wish to thank all the people without whom this return to F1 would not have been possible. Total, which supports me since 2006, and Gravity Sport Management, are first on this list."

Eric Boullier, Team Principal said, "I'm delighted that Romain Grosjean will side Kimi next year. Romain has shown a lot of maturity in the past twelve months both through his GP2 Series victory and his development as third driver with us. We were impressed when he drove for us in the first practice sessions in Abu Dhabi and Brazil. We are confident that drafting him in to one of our driver's seats will help us in our rebuilding process. I would like to thank Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna for their contribution to the team's performance this year and I wish them all the best for the future."

Genii Capital, chairman, Gerard Lopez said, "Only last week I reiterated that the team is at the start of a brand new cycle. Announcing Romain as our race driver alongside Kimi is great news and will help us achieve our aims of getting back to the very top. The announcements we made today and last week are exciting ones for our team and there is a real buzz surrounding us now."

Jacques-Emmanuel Saulnier, Senior Vice-President Corporate Communications at Total said, "Total is delighted to give the young talented French driver, Romain Grosjean, the opportunity to fulfill his dream by becoming an F1 driver with the Lotus Renault GP team. An overall mission of our company, as is LRGP's, is to support young talented people and encourage them along the path to excellence and performance. The involvement of our Group in the highest category of motor sport alongside Romain Grosjean, with whom we've formed a relationship based on trust over more than six years, goes far beyond the purely communications aspect. It shows our determination to develop the performance of our fuels and lubricants with the aim of achieving optimal energetic efficiency to help our clients reduce and improve consumption. Formula 1 must embrace the perspective of clean technology and permanent evolution, and go back to its roots by becoming a laboratory for innovation once again."

The move leaves Vitaly Petrov, who drove for the team for two-seasons, and Bruno Senna without drives yet for 2012.