Lotus owner committed to Formula One for now - Lopez
Will the news keep Kimi Raikkonen with the Lotus team next year?
Sep.4 (GMM) At least for now, team owner Gerard Lopez insists he is committed to Formula One.
In the past weeks, he has consistently played down the importance of the confirmed news that Lotus, the Enstone based team formerly known as Renault and Benetton, has debts of EUR 120 million.
He told Russia's f1news.ru that the actual number is not significant to Genii, the investment firm he leads.
So, asked if he is sticking with Formula One and with the name Lotus, Lopez answered: "I think so.
"I have already said that we will stay in Formula One as long as we are interested. That was the case two years ago, also last year, and nothing has changed.
"However, not everything depends on us. I cannot say what Formula One will be like in three to five years.
"Our interest depends a lot on whether we are among the best teams in the championship. To win, to fight the best -- this is our main motivation to stay," he insisted.
Indeed, he said Lotus cannot be compared to Mercedes or Ferrari, given that Genii "do not sell cars".
F1, for an investment firm, "is a platform, not an advertising space", said Lopez.
"Generally, having a Formula One team in itself is definitely not a project that can bring profits. For us it is enough that the team is just not unprofitable," he added.
For that reason, Lopez said, Lotus is not for sale.
"We do not hide that we are looking for partners, we talk about it openly, but we are not talking about a sale of the team. It's not the same thing," he insisted.
Share Or Save This Story
Jules Bianchi's father speaks of family's continued hopes
Sauber under no illusions about constructors' position
Pirelli chief calls for radical F1 overhaul
David Coulthard explains why Robin Raikkonen's rise resembles Max Verstappen's
On this day: Michael Schumacher wins… and stuns tifosi with F1 retirement
Red Bull signs Kimi Raikkonen’s son as junior driver
Charles Leclerc: “McLaren and Red Bull did a step forward that we didn’t do”
Who slept worst last night: Lewis Hamilton
How the chase to catch Mercedes is unfolding
Alpine lost Fuji WEC victory by 0.591s because it “didn’t want to sacrifice a car”
Charles Leclerc: “McLaren and Red Bull did a step forward that we didn’t do”
The one detail that impresses Red Bull most about Isack Hadjar's "outstanding" F1 return
"Crazy and unfair": Anger over Nicolo Bulega extensively testing Ducati's 850cc MotoGP bike
Why Mercedes is still quicker than McLaren
Baku late-race chaos almost costs George Russell victory over Max Verstappen
How George Russell claimed his career-best pole margin in F1 Azerbaijan GP qualifying
How the chase to catch Mercedes is unfolding
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments