r/motorsports • u/[deleted] • 4d ago

How awesome would it be if Lotus came back to F1?

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2 Upvotes
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8

u/bigdogg2783 4d ago

They did in the early 2010s. They had Team Lotus who were backmarkers, and then Lotus cars were the title sponsor of Team Enstone in the yellow and black Raikkonen era from 2012-14. Won a few races with Raikkonen and had a ton of podiums.

2

u/AboveTheLights 4d ago

They also made an embarrassing return in IndyCar racing during that time. They were something like 20-25 HP away from everyone else. It was ugly.

4

u/Tank-o-grad 4d ago

They tried this about 15 years ago or so, it was an absolute shambles. Team Lotus joined as one of the three new teams (along with Virgin and Hispania Racing Team) in 2010, there was anlmight scuffle between them and Lotus Cars Ltd (the racing team was split from the road cars business when the racing organisation went belly up in 1994) who bought a stake in the Enstone Team (at that point Renault). Eventually, Team Lotus became Team Caterham before going belly up once again, and Team Enstone became Lotus Renault GP for a bit before going back to being just Renault and then Alpine.

3

u/Throwawaymister2 4d ago

They DID bring it back but what's the point? It's not the same company now, it's just a marketing/branding exercise. In 2011 There were TWO unrelated Lotus teams on the grid. Total shit show.

1

u/FormulaLes 4d ago

It’s been done, was a massive disaster. See 2010 season for reference

1

u/Michkov 4d ago

That would be the worst kind of fan service. I can't think of anyone who made Lotus great that is still alive. All they are trading on is the name of a former greater. Seeing how that played out in the past feels like asking for a bad reception. Don't forget we had "Lotus" in F1 for a hot second back in the 2010s and it didn't leave any impact.

1

u/Accomplished-Pie-311 2d ago

Lotus being the acronym of lots of trouble usually serious. Unfortunately once more F1 being a giant money pit it'll be another financial problem. Nothing Lotus has faced ever before on multiple occasions however.