ltxcn.top
From our seat it's been a positive start to the season, but how abou🅠t your from your seat?

Romain Grosjean
[lau꧟ghs] Pretty much the same! We mis🎃sed two opportunities in the first two races to score good points but after that we've made most of the things pretty much as good as we could. Learning to work with my new engineers as well. Here, everything has been going in the right direction.

ltxcn.top
I guess there must be a plus side to be♎ing into position to miss opportunities after last year...

Romain Grosjean
Yeah, last year, we had one opportunity coming it was passed by fast and if you miss it th෴en you have zero points all year long. This year, we had a problem before the start in Melbourne, we had a few problems in Malaysia, but after that, races are coming, the car is there, you can play with the strategy you can try to maximize it.

ltxcn.top
Everyone knows how good the Mercedes engine is, but how much impro🌟ved in the Lotus chassis🌸 this year?

Romain Grosjean
It's more the chassis than the engine to be fair. Of course, we do have the best power unit on the grid. We put it in the car after a𒀰 year of experience so tဣhat everything was straightforward. Other than last year, it was not ready, plus it was new technology, so there was a lot of development going on. To me the biggest difference is the chassis. From day one, you know, it was a good baseline. Last year from day one, I knew there were problems from there.

ltxcn.top
You've suggested previously that the car reacts how you expect it to 😼when you apply changes - how important is it to have that pr🧜edictability now?

Romain Grosjean
On a single lap, you can always play with an unpredictable car, but over a race, it's just too hard to control. You cannot drive it the way you want, you're just trying to change the issue rather than solve the problem of handling and 🔯set up.

ltxcn.top
How much untapped potential is there to the Lot꧋us E23?

Romain Grosjean
I think, let꧋'s hope, let's see what these upgrades will do. Another thing in the pipeline is coming hopefully soon. It could do a big difference to our lap time. Let's see what we've got now. We've got ideas of what is coming. And then we just need to fit it into the car and see what it brings.

ltxcn.top
Despite the difficulties, how ﷺmuch did you learn from your tough 2014 season?

Romain Grosjean
To be fair, lots. It was very different to everything I like doing. It's keeping the frustration down and being for the first time a team leader in a difficult situatiꦚon, so I've learned how to learn what I've done right, what I've done wrong, how to improve myself, how 💦to drive the car that I don't understand that I can't set it up the way I want. I've learnt a lot.

ltxcn.top
Does it benefit your mental strength?

Romain Grosjean
It wasn't driving skill, the car was just doing whatever it wanted to. It was reacting to problems rath🐬er than trying to understand and build your weekend or your lap.

ltxcn.top
Has it made you a better driver?

Romain Grosjean
It has certainly, yeah. I have more t﷽ools in my hands to play with.

ltxcn.top
Are podiums for Lotus in the offing this year?

Romain Grosjean
Not now. The problem is that Ferrari has improved a lot, so it makes three steps of the podium all taken by cars. But I think if we can keep fightin🍬g as we do, why not try to chase Williams. Then it can be a good year.

ltxcn.top
As a driver that has competed wi�🍷�th the same team, but through various eras, how have you seen it evolve?

Romain Grosjean
What matters to me is that people working in the team are proper racers and they want to try and win races and do the best and that's what the focus on. Of course, you don't have this super-constructor, you d🤪on't have the money of Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull. But as well we are doing a good job.

ltxcn.top
How proud are you of the team and how it ♓🏅is functioning on a smaller budget now?

Romain Grosjean
When we had a problem with 2013 when the employees were not paid and they were coming out of the race and they were there doing the pit stop, they were doing everything they could to make the car faster, it's the spirit of this team and the strength of the people. They're a real♌ly good group of people and they deserve to win races and to have more.

ltxcn.top
Does it tha✱t give you additional motivation to reward them?

Romain Grosjean
It does. As long as you see t🍸hat people you are working with are racers and the only goal is to go faster and faster and to improve, you know they are doing their best... That's what you want to see.

ltxcn.top
Fernando Alonso says he doesn't think drivers get enough say in F1 matters anymore - is that an o൩pinion you ꦫagree with?

Romain Grosjean
I think there are always place for improvement. Of course, we've always trying to use the GPA to give our vote, so I thi𒊎nk if we stick all together then we have more power.

ltxcn.top
You're no൩w the only Frenchman in F1 and there hasn't been a French Grand Prix for some years.𝄹.. have you noticed a dip in interest in your home nation?

Romain Grosjean
No. people recognize me more and more. It's quite nice to have support and just a quick word saying 'c'mon, we're behind you, we're with you, pushing, cheering you', it's always nice. Seeing the flags in the gra🌠ndstands you know, the French flag is for you or there's other stuff for you which is nice. I'm just doing my best so for myself, my team... my w👍ife is happy too!