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Grosjean has 'long-term future' at Lotus

Romain Grosjean is entering his second full season with Lotus © Sutton Images

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Romain Grosjean has a "long-term future" at Lotus according to the team's owner Gerard Lopez.

Lotus was slow to confirm Grosjean for 2013 after a number of errors blighted his season in 2012, but has been retained alongside Kimi Raikkonen this year. Lopez said that the team had taken the pressure off Grosjean by reassuring him he is part of the team's plans going forward and he said he had noticed a change in the driver's demeanour.

"Romain's a different guy," Lopez told Sporting Life. "He knows what he has to do. He doesn't have that pressure, stress as we have essentially told him he's a long-term future with us. So now he can literally take it race by race, practice by practice because he's got the speed to win races. Overall, we think we've a very good pair of drivers and a good car, so we're quite positive."

Lopez added that his target for 2013 was to win more than one race as he predicts another close season.

"It's going to be a pretty bunched-up group, and I would be surprised if we were outside of that group. The question is, with it being so tight, where do you end up within that group? Right now, I believe we've a car that is at least as good, and probably a little bit better, than the car we had last year.

"Although we feel pretty good about the car, how much has everybody else improved? But then we've two drivers who are now really into it, who know the team, the car, the tracks. Looking back, I think Kimi would have won more races last year if it hadn't been for a number of reasons. So this season, winning more than one race is certainly an objective we should have."

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