Lotus have unveiled the car Kimi Raikkonen will drive on his return to Formula 1 this season.
The car features one of the most elegant-looking solutions yet to new rules that require lower noses and have led to a number of ugly-looking cars.
And Raikkonen, who returns after two years in rallying, is confident the car will be competitive.
“They are very capable people. They have a good feeling so hopefully we will get good results,” he said.
The car was launched online with a video after the team’s website failed to work.
The team, who have raced as Renault since 2002 and won back-to-back world titles with Fernando Alonso in 2005 and 2006, have changed their name to Lotus this season. BBC Sport
The car is outwardly one of the more traditional designs unveiled so far, though it features the stepped nose design now commonplace, and reverts to a traditional exhaust layout - as mandated by the 2012 regulations - after last year’s experiment with a forward exiting exhaust. Team boss Eric Boullier hinted that the design featured plenty of subtle innovations.
“It’s true that the team’s reputation is good in terms of innovation and we brought through the last years some nice ones, and let’s say some more delicate ones, but definitely we have some this year,” he said.
Boullier said the priority was to bring a winning spirit back to Enstone, which had claimed championships in its Benetton and Renault eras, most recently in 2006 with Fernando Alonso.
“My biggest hope is obviously to bring this positivity back again and to make sure this team is again at the front of the grid and for many years and a long time,” said Boullier.
“Also, to have all the people in Enstone enjoying life here and enjoying their passion for motor racing and F1.
“The fear is that we can have anything wrong which you cannot expect or handle and which would slow down this process.” Yahoo! Eurosport UK
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