SEPTEMBER 29, 2010

Gascoyne signs long term Lotus deal

Lotus Racing, which recently announced that it will race as Team Lotus in F1 next year, has just announced a new five-year deal tying chief technical officer Mike Gascoyne to the team until at least 2015.

The announcement comes as both Lotus Racing and Group Lotus start a legal battle over the right to use the Lotus name and brand in motor racing. Part of that process may include courts assessing the structure, viability and sustainability of both parties in that regard.

Gascoyne said: "Having started the team from scratch with Tony it was always my intention to finish my career here, so it's great to have formally agreed a five year deal. I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to Tony, Din, Nasa, Riad and the whole team, and I'm extremely grateful to everyone involved in Lotus Racing for having the confidence to take this into a long-term contract. We've had a great start to our partnership together, and I'm looking forward to continuing that for the next five years, and even beyond that."

Team Principal Tony Fernandes added: "Mike's five year deal is a major announcement for the whole Lotus Racing team. It shows just how serious we are, not only about how far ahead we are setting our aspirations, but also as a reward to Mike for the incredibly hard work he and the team have already put in to get us from literally four people back in September '09 to our current position as a serious F1 player with a very bright future ahead of us. On a personal level, I've really enjoyed the last year that we've been working together, and I'm very excited about working with Mike for many years to come."