Lotus did not see the arrival in Belgium

After Pastor Maldonado's exit in testing, the Lotus clan was aiming for a problem-free race at Spa in Belgium, especially as the pace of the E22s seemed encouraging. But the Venezuelan was forced to stop at the very start of the Grand Prix, when Romain Grosjean, after a chaotic start, stopped before the end of the event. The Frenchman, however, wanted to highlight the positive points.

“At the exit of the Source at the start, I was hit by Jules Bianchi who turned on me, and damaged my front wing, indicates the Frenchman. I suddenly lost in aero performance. At the end of the race, the wing was too damaged and we preferred to give up. This is our third withdrawal in a row, and it’s rather annoying. Even so, there are some positives to take away. Our pace in mediums was close to Toro Rosso. I can't comment on the soft tires because we had damage to the front wing. The race also highlights some positive points on the engine side. I hope for a step forward in Singapore, because we must not hide it, it will be tough in Monza. »

The stable ofenstone announced that it was an exhaust problem which probably forced Pastor Maldonado to retire at the start of the race.

Find the report and analysis of the Belgian Grand Prix produced by our special correspondents in Spa, in issue 1975 of AUTOhebdo, available from tomorrow evening in digital version and from Wednesday on newsstands.