Lotus F1 Team secured fourth position in the 2012 FIA Formula 1 Constructors World Championship with over twice the points tally of nearest rival Mercedes, with Kimi Rikknen taking third in the Drivers Championship after an eventful end to the twenty-race season in Brazil.
Kimi finished in tenth place after an incident-filled mixed weather event, whilst Romain Grosjean exited the race in a 9.5g impact accident after leaving the track on lap 6.Kimi started on scrubbed medium compound tyres, pitting on lap 5 for intermediates, lap 19 for fresh mediums and finally lap 53 for a second set of intermediatesRomain started on hard compound tyresKimi has scored points in all but one race this season, and is the only driver to finish every Grand Prix.
Kimi Rikknen, P10, E20-05 "It was a busy race and we didnt have the pace we wanted all the time. There was certainly a lot going on. I went off at the last corner on lap fifty-two as I couldnt see well with my visor being dirty and fogged up. Where I went off you can get back on the track by going through the support race pit lane, but you have to go through a gate. I know this as I did the same thing in 2001 and the gate was open that year. Somebody closed it this time. Next year Ill make sure its open again."
Romain Grosjean, DNF, E20-03 "Im a little bit shaken but otherwise not too bad. Everything was nicely under control at the start of the race then it all ended very suddenly at turn eleven. It was a strange one; I could see it was raining a bit more so I was taking it even easier than on the lap before, then suddenly the car just went from underneath me and that was it. Ive not had much luck this weekend and thats definitely not the way I wanted to end the season, but overall its been a good year and hopefully there will be many better days to come."
Eric Boullier, Team Principal "That was obviously a very dramatic race to end the season; not the one we would have expected and not really the one we would have wanted on track. The conclusion of the championship is good; fourth was our target and weve achieved that by a considerable margin. On top of that weve been fighting with the leading teams right to the end of the year. For Kimi to take third in the Drivers Championship is a really great achievement after being away for two years and a testament not only to the car we gave him, but to the team for their support. We scored our first win with the Lotus name and achieved a good number of podiums over the year, so overall its been a very good season. I can only thank everyone at Enstone and everyone at Renault; Im very proud to be a part of this effort. Our progress is very promising for next year. With the continuity and stability we have Im sure well be fighting for podiums again in 2013.
In terms of the bigger picture, we must of course send our congratulations to Sebastian Vettel who joins the sports greats as a triple World Champion. A mention also for the fine efforts of another former Enstone championFernando Alonsowho drove superbly all season. Finally, we say a very fond farewell to another of the finest drivers around in Michael Schumacher. Its always a big thing when a multiple champion leaves the sport, and Michael has achieved great things over many years, including two Drivers Championships for Enstone. We wish him all the very best for the future"
Alan Permane, Trackside Operations Director "It was an incident-packed race which ended early for Romain who spun off very early in the damp conditions. Kimi had a very tricky race including a couple of spins and problems with his visor, so not the ideal day and a tough weekend overall. Looking at the season, were happy with P3 in the Drivers Championship for Kimi and P4 in the Constructors Championship for the team. Our target was fourth and weve easily achieved that, but perhaps even more encouraging is that at one stage it looked as if we could challenge for third or maybe even higher. Im sure Kimi would have rather won the championship but it was certainly a very respectable comeback."
Ricardo Penteado, Renault Sport F1 Team Support Leader "What a hard race today, in every sense of the word. Kimis points give him third in the championship, plus make him the only driver to finish every race this season. It also shows the ongoing durability and performance of the Viry-Enstone partnership. Its a very positive way to end what has been a very successful season, with one win and 303 points to our credit."
Summary The race began under light drizzle which became heavier as the opening laps went on Kimi started on white marked medium compound Pirelli tyres, Romain on the silver marked hards; both making a clean getaway Yellow flags emerged on the first lap after an incident involving a number of cars at T5 Romain crashed heavily at T11 on lap 6 to bring out further yellow flags; thankfully emerging unscathed Conditions varied between wet and dry throughout, forcing multiple tyre changes The race finished under safety car conditions after DIR collided with the pit straight wall on the penultimate lap
Kimi Rikknen, E20-05
Grid: P8 Race: P10 Fastest Lap: 1:19.444 [Lap 34] Pit Stops: 3 [Lap 5, 19, 53]
Key Moments: Lap 01: Loses a position to HUL through T1, then forced to move off track at T4 to avoid VET; eventually ends the first lap in his starting position Lap 04: Drops to P10 as rain becomes heavier; suffering from lack of grip on slick rubber Lap 05: Pits for intermediates Lap 19: Drops into the box for a fresh set of medium tyres; enough of a dry line now emerging to allow for slicks Lap 37: Up one spot as DIR spins trough T12 Lap 38: Back into the points; great move around the outside of MSC into T1, superb close driving by both Lap 52: An off-track excursion and ill-fated detour up the slip road at T15 to fall outside of the points Lap 53: Back onto intermediate rubber as the rain intensifies once more Lap 65: Steady progress through the field to regain a top 10 slot Lap 71: Chequered flag; P10 and a single point to clinch P3 in the Drivers World Championship
Romain Grosjean, E20-03
Grid: P18 Race: DNF Fastest Lap: 1:22.184 [Lap 02] Pit Stops: N/A
Key Moments: Lap 01: Clean start; takes two places through the first corner to cross the line in P16 then drops back after taking avoiding action to miss T4 incident Lap 02: Up to P14 after re-passing another pair of back markers Lap 04: Gains three places in a single lap with some smart overtaking Lap 06: Touches the white line on an increasingly greasy track through T11; spins out and into the barrier at high speed, making an early exit from the race
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