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Lotus drops Raikkonen from test schedule

ESPN Staff
July 17, 2013 « Ricciardo's Red Bull run postponed by a day | Two-horse race for Red Bull seat »
Nicolas Prost will return to the cockpit of the Lotus on Friday © Sutton Images
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Kimi Raikkonen will not take part in the Young Driver Test on Friday after the team decided he would be "underutilised" under the regulations restricting the freedom of race driver's programmes at Silverstone this week.

Race drivers are allowed to take part in the test but only if they stick to a run plan dictated by tyre supplier Pirelli. Any development work on the car has to be undertaken by drivers with less than two grands prix experience, meaning the team will call on Nicolas Prost, who is testing the car on Wednesday, to return on Friday.

"Once details of what race drivers were allowed to do here became apparent, we would have only been able to conduct a very limited programme with Kimi," Lotus trackside operations director Alan Permane explained. "If we were to run him, it would compromise the other development work we want to do with the car here. By running Nico again we'll be able to build on the work already carried out and hopefully be in the best position to develop the E21 ahead of Budapest, whilst also conducting the necessary tyre testing for Pirelli."

Mark Webber was also pulled from Red Bull's programme this week after a reshuffle that allows Antonio Felix da Costa more time in the car. McLaren opted not to call on either of its race drivers from the start of the test but several other teams, including Ferrari (with Felipe Massa) and Red Bull (with Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo), will still run a race driver for at least half a day.

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