8: Lotus Teams Revolt

It didn’t take long for the four Lotus-powered teams to realize they were in deep trouble.

The mass exodus by those teams might have come to a head in late April, but the panic button had been hit, punched and shot for good measure back in January. Concerns about the company’s engines, from the delivery dates to the total number of engines scheduled to be produced, had been growing throughout 2011. But it took the last-minute project’s on-track debut in January to confirm how far behind things had actually become.

The prolonged negotiations and subsequent sale of Lotus, which saw all of its accounts frozen as its new majority stakeholders reviewed its contracts and spending habits, had a crippling effect just as Engine Developments Limited, the firm tasked with producing the 2.2-liter turbo V6, was in the finals stages of development in December and January.

Between the small sums committed to the project and the inability to receive those funds at a crucial juncture, the results were visible from the first tests with HVM Racing were. The laundry list of issues were discouraging, if not an ominous sign for teams like Bryan Herta Autosport and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing that had designs on being competitive from the very first race.

Latecomers Dragon Racing were also stunned to find how big the gap was to Chevy and Honda when they sampled the Lotus engine for the first time in March. After the majority of its five entries either blew up or took major thrashings at the first four rounds, things went haywire for Lotus.

With a big new sponsor in Barracuda Networks expecting solid results, Herta and co-owner Steve Newey bailed after Round 3 at Long Beach, skipping Brazil as they looked for a way out of their engine contract. DRR sought to join BHA in the ex-Lotus club, and with BHA’s ballsy move—showing the series they’d rather stay home than spend another race with Lotus, INDYCAR agreed to the dual release prior to the Sao Paulo street race.

Months of bad Lotus-related headlines came to a boil as two of its four team found the exit door, and it looked like the other two would follow suit, but the saga dragged on into Indy. And then it got downright nasty.

Dragon Racing, in a similar situation to BHA with its myriad of sponsors expecting a greater return on investment, looked to bolt the door at the same time, but with Lotus threatening to sue the series, INDYCAR clamped down and refused to grant the team’s request.

Lawsuits followed from Dragon owner Jay Penske and frantic negotiations took place with IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard leading numerous meetings to free Dragon and satisfy Lotus, which continued through the start of practice for the 500. A deal was finally struck and Dragon was released by Lotus, with the manufacturer showing more fight and resolve over its contracts than the competitive state of its engines.

Lotus would eventually depart Indy with just one team, HVM, left on its roster, and spent the rest of the season embroiled in less than pleasant fights with the team as HVM continually (and unsuccessfully) lobbied the series for the same release given to BHA, Dragon and DRR.

The public rift between Lotus and its teams might have been most evident in April and May, but the ruckus didn’t end there. The manufacturer waged a secondary and more private battle with the series beginning at Indy terms and costs to extricate itself from the 5-year engine supply contract it signed and no longer wanted to honor. That matter was finally resolved in early December.

INDYCAR: Lotus Turns Its First Laps At Palm Beach Shakedown

INDYCAR: Lotus Sale Won’t Impact Racing Plans; Working On Engine Supply

INDYCAR: Tough Decisions Pending By The Series, Lotus, Its Teams

INDYCAR: Herta—I’m Betting On Us

INDYCAR: Lotus Release BHA, DRR

INDYCAR: Dragon Racing Sues Lotus; Signing With Chevy?

INDYCAR: An End To The Lotus Saga Is Finally In Sight

INDYCAR: Series, Lotus Confirm Official Split