Group Lotus has ramped up its plans for a return to top-level racing by appointing a director of motorsport.
Group Lotus is the car-making and consultancy arm of Lotus, based in Norfolk, and is not connected to the new, Malaysian-based Formula One team Team Lotus that is scheduled to race next year.
However, parent firm Proton owns the Team Lotus name and has given permission for the Malaysian-backed consortium to use it on its F1 cars next year.
Group Lotus is looking at possible motorsport projects including Indycar, GT racing and Le Mans, and will pursue these plans under the stewardship of ex-Ferrari, Maserati and Fiat competitions boss Claudio Berro.
Dany Bahar, Group Lotus CEO, said: “Claudio has a proven track record of not only setting up and managing the motorsport divisions within sports car brands but also winning championships in GT racing and rallying. His skills will be very valuable as we look to return Lotus to high-level motorsport around the world. ”
Berro added: “I am looking forward to reintroducing Lotus to high-level motorsport to not only compete and win but also to demonstrate the shared technology between Lotus sports cars and future racing cars.”
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