Lotus appoints new deputy team principal. Lotus F1 Team has confirmed the appointment of Federico Gastaldi as deputy team principal in the latest part of an ongoing management reshuffle at Enstone. Over the past twelve months, Lotus has endured some financial strife that has coincided with a steady exodus of personnel. As well as star driver Kimi Raikkonen leaving at the end of 2013 under a cloud due to a payment dispute, the team has also lost team principal Eric Boullier, technical director James Allison, engineer Ciaron Pilbeam, aerodynamicist Dirk de Beer and media director Stephane Samson. Overall, it is thought that the team has downsized by 20% from 500 to 400 staff. Gastaldi joined the team in 2010 (back when it was the Renault works squad) and most recently worked as director of business development at Enstone. He also worked at the base back when the team was known as Benetton. Now, he will work under team principal and team owner Gerard Lopez. “We are pleased to announce our new deputy team principal,” Lopez said in a statement. “Federico Gastaldi has been a valued friend of the Genii and Enstone families for quite some time. His Enstone history dates back to the Benetton days. He also works with Genii on a number of projects in South America. For Lotus F1 Team, Federico was instrumental in nurturing our relationship with PDVSA and he continues to be a vital link for us with Venezuela.” Speaking of his appointment, Gastaldi said: “It’s a great honour and I’m looking forward to it. I have a long history with Enstone with my previous role of director of business development and then before that in the Benetton days. “The team is an exceptional place to be and the depth of talent is amazing. My approach will be to ensure we get the most out of every aspect of Enstone and harness every talent housed there.” Lotus will be hoping that Gastaldi’s appointment can provide some kind of stability at Enstone after a tumultuous few months.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 05:10:00 +0000
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