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Lotus is all set to compete in the 2010 Formula One season as they fired up their V8 Cosworth engine on Saturday.
Lotus, the name, will be making a comeback to Grand Prix racing after a gap of sixteen years. It last competed in 1994 finishing dead last then among the 14 teams that had taken part that season. The last Lotus-Cosworth pairing was in 1982.
The current team boasts Mike Gascoyne as the technical director, who has a wealth of experience in the sport with teams like Force India, Toyota, Benetton and Jordan. Alex Yoong, the 2002 Minardi driver, is also another name from the sport associated with the team as the Head of Driver Development, Asia.
The brand Lotus was taken over by a Malaysian car company Proton in 1994, following the bankruptcy of its former owner Bugatti. The current F1 department is also referred to as 1Malaysia F1 Team and its Malaysian connection includes, apart from Yoong, CEO of AirAsia Tony Fernandes. Fernandes is also the team principal of the outfit.
Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen were announced as drivers for the team. Coupled, the drivers have 16 years of experience in Formula One with 15 podiums and two wins.
The team will have run down on Tuesday followed by an official launch on Friday.