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Raikkonen and Grosjean will stay - Boullier

Eric Boullier: "I can understand why other teams would be interested" © Sutton Images

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• Drivers:
• Eric Boullier
• |
• Romain Grosjean
• |
• Kimi Räikkönen

• Teams:
• Lotus F1

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier says other teams would be wasting their time if they were to try to lure Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean away from their current drives.

With ongoing speculation about Felipe Massa's future at Ferrari, both Raikkonen and Grosjean have been linked to the Italian team. Boullier says he is not surprised that other teams are interested in his two drivers but is confident neither will leave in 2013.

"I can understand why other teams would be interested," he said. "Both Kimi and Romain are performing very well this season. For Kimi, it's like he's never been away. Romain is a natural talent, and improving at a very rapid rate. It's great to see the interest from other teams, but to be honest they're probably wasting their time. There is no reason for Kimi or Romain to leave and I think they will both enjoy very successful futures with us."

Lotus is currently third in the constructors' championship, one point away from McLaren and ahead of Ferrari.

"I think we can all be satisfied with what we've achieved in the first half of the season; especially coming off the back of a difficult 2011. It's a testament to the skill and determination of everyone at Enstone that we've produced a great car which seems to be getting better as the season progresses and we hope this continues. That said, I can't ignore the points we've lost in a lot of different ways and there is a big margin for improvement through the rest of the year."

Asked whether he had set a higher target for the team in light of Lotus' recent performances, Boullier said: "Our target is the same; to be better than last year. However, if we continue to show strong pace at every race then maybe we will revise our ambitions!"

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.