Coulthard : Grosjean deserves credit but...

However, former F1 driver David Coulthard has revealed that the latest "joke" in the paddock is that, given Romain Grosjean’s increasingly impressive performances, "Ferrari have signed the wrong Lotus driver".

The Scot, though, is not convinced the joke has merit.

"Let’s not forget that in their two years as teammates with equal opportunity, Raikkonen has been in front of Grosjean in the championship, and he is going to finish there this year despite Raikkonen missing these last two races," Coulthard, now a television commentator, wrote in his BBC column.

"So Grosjean deserves credit where it’s due based on the here and now, but world champions deliver over an entire season, and Grosjean has yet to do that."