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Romain Grosjean was more than happy to fly from France to complete just 46 laps

Bonus for Lotus driver after Raikkonen falls ill

Image: Romain Grosjean: Was called back to Spain on Saturday

"It was worth it." That was how Romain Grosjean summed up his Saturday, one that saw him called back to Spain at short notice after Lotus team-mate Kimi Raikkonen was taken ill.

The track temperatures might have improved on Saturday but even with his limited running, Grosjean experienced a significant tyre drop-off - the bane of all drivers pre-season and one that looks set to continue. "It's not easy," he added. "The medium tyres can do a few laps but then the performance drop is there. We ran the hard at the end and they were about the same. We are trying to do our best to keep them alive but there's not much at the moment we can do. "Graining's going to be a headache big-time this year. Melbourne can be cool, it's a front limited circuit. At the moment front graining is an issue. He added: "If you push hard you destroy them. But what about if you push less hard: does it last longer or not? These are question marks that we all have. I think when you go to Melbourne and race, it will be difficult to say to a driver, 'don't push too hard'." Although Grosjean is staying put this time, it sounds as though his winter's work is done. "I'm going to wait for the final assessment of our doctors but I think he's going to be okay," Lotus Team Principal Eric Boullier said of Raikkonen, who has been struck down with a suspected bout of food poisoning. Of course, Grosjean was not the only driver to gain unexpected track time. Valsecchi completed 16 laps in the morning, having been handed only 15 minutes' notice. "It was a really good surprise this morning because Kimi had some problem and his physical trainer said he was not fit enough to drive, so the team decided to use me," said the GP2 Champion, who wore Raikkonen's crash helmet. "I use everything from Raikkonen," he added. "Seat, overalls, shoes, pants, socks. Only the underwear was missing!"

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