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Grosjean used Monza to learn from Raikkonen

Romain Grosjean watched the Italian Grand Prix from the pit wall © Sutton Images

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

• Teams:
• Lotus F1

Romain Grosjean said he took the opportunity to learn from team-mate Kimi Raikkonen during his one race ban at the Italian Grand Prix.

Grosjean was suspended at Monza after triggering a first corner accident at the previous race at Spa-Francorchamps. He attended the Italian Grand Prix, and while he admitted watching from the garage was not ideal, he said there were still some things he could learn.

"I think for me, the main thing about Monza was being in the garage and feeling the support I had from the team," he said. "It was really nice and I think that's something a driver needs. We're a family here and it meant a lot to me. Apart from that, being on the pit wall with the engineers and looking at the data is always useful. You get another perspective on how the cars are performing, where the differences are, what can be improved and so on.

"I can still learn a lot from Kimi too; he has a huge amount of experience. As a team-mate he is both challenging and fantastic; challenging because he is so quick and has abilities I have yet to develop, but fantastic because he is also a great example to follow in the way he can switch his mind set so quickly during a race weekend to be entirely focused on the job. Apart from actually being in the car, I think the weekend in Monza was the best preparation I could have for Singapore.

Team principal Eric Boullier said his driver is now ready to put the whole issue behind him.

"He's in good spirits. Monza was tough for him, but there are also some positives to take from this experience. For example, Romain has followed Kimi's weekend quite closely and I'm sure that he has noticed a few useful tricks. Now, the situation is back to normal and I hope we can put this story behind us."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.