Belgium GP 2015 Preview: I believe we should be in a reasonable position - Lotus

With the Belgium Grand Prix now just 2 days away many enthusiasts are thankful that the Summer Break has come to a close and what better track to start the second half of the season on then the fast and flowing Spa-Francorchamps in the beautiful Belgium countryside.

The circuit is the longest track of the season at a tick over 7km. Famous for its long striaghts and fast corners like Eau Rouge and Blanchimont Spa is very power dependent and teams like McLaren-Honda and Red Bull should find themselves struggling to keep up. This opens the door for a team to follow behind the top three of Mercedes, Williams and Ferrari. But just who exactly would this team be?

The first option is the newly Mercedes powered Lotus. With an experienced driver line up of Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado the team is definitely in a good spot to contest Red Bull. The reason why Lotus aren't already there has been reliability with Maldonado retiring in the first 4 races of the season. With only 11 finishes out of a potential 20, Lotus have been in the points 7 of those 11 times. If Lotus isn't plagued by any of these niggling issues they should be on for a very good weekend. In an interview with formula1.com Lotus technical director Nick Chester has said: “It’s a strong power track and we have a strong power unit. We have fairly low drag on the E23 so I believe we should be in a reasonable position.”

Pastor Maldonado at Pre-Season testing in Jerez.

Lotus had strong competition from Force India though, with a new car they'll have both the grip and the speed and will be tough to beat. Force India's team principal Vijay Mallya told formula1,com that "We expect to be in good shape this weekend and we will be aiming for Q3 on Saturday and good points on Sunday.”

Sahara Force India race driver Sergio Perez

Sauber is another potential to spoil the party. After an amazing start to the season with 14 points the Swiss team have only managed 7 more points and have really dropped off in terms of pace. But with a newer spec Ferrari power unit and brand new aero package the team is feeling confident to launch up the field.

Once again Belgium is a track to suit Mercedes but don't fully discount Ferrari. They will have a lot of confidence from the result in Hungary.

The Belgium GP begins on the 21st of August with Friday practice.

Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/greenflagf1
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUJ2eNrgU1RHcEweh23bpvg/videos