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Lotus name revived at dawn of F1’s new era
The Lotus name officially returned to Formula 1 last Friday as the new-look Malaysian-backed Lotus Racing team was unveiled to a receptive crowd of around 500 guests and media at London’s Royal Horticultural Halls.
The 2010 pre-season has been rather devoid of glamorous launches and car unveilings, so the Lotus event was something of a treat, even while the hardcore F1 fraternity was busy testing in Jerez and the rest of the sporting world was readying itself for the start of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Opinion seems divided on Lotus’s return with the sceptics harsh and scathing in their claims that the team’s backers are merely cashing in on the iconic Lotus name. But Tony Fernandes, the Malaysian entrepreneur, founder and CEO of AirAsia and principal backer of Lotus Racing, is a breath of fresh air for Formula 1 and the apparent backing of Clive Chapman, son of Lotus founder Colin Chapman, should help to win over the purists – to an extent.
The technical team, led by Mike Gascoyne, has achieved a miraculous feat in a short space of time. Don’t forget they were only granted an entry by the FIA in mid-September and just five months later they had the T127 ready in all its glory not only for its stage debut but most impressively ready for testing which gets underway in Jerez this week.
Any new team coming into the sport is usually permitted a period of grace, a few races at least to bed in and establish themselves. But the sheer weight of the Lotus name will not afford Lotus Racing that luxury. What they have achieved in less than half a year is to be lauded and if they are anywhere near as good on track as they currently look on paper, they may spring a surprise or two – especially with Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen on driving duties.
But before we get carried away, let’s remember that back in September the Lotus project was little more than an empty factory in Norfolk. That image should keep things in perspective and expectations in check.
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