Romain Grosjean will race alongside Kimi Raikkonen at Lotus in 2012, having beaten the likes of Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna to the drive.
The announcement makes it clear that sponsor Total is very much behind the appointment of the Franco-Swiss driver.
“I am thrilled to be one of the team’s race drivers in 2012,” said the GP2 champion. “There’s a big grin on my face at the prospect of getting behind the wheel of next year’s car, and I feel very privileged to be given this opportunity.
“To be racing alongside a former world champion and someone who is hungry and returning to Formula 1 will be a great experience, and I’m sure will help raise my level of performance too. I feel that my successful season in GP2 Series has helped me mature a lot, and I am a much more complete driver than I was last time I was competing in this sport.
“Returning to Enstone as a race driver feels like coming home. I will not disappoint and I wish to thank all the people without whom this return to F1 would not have been possible. Total, which supports me since 2006, and Gravity Sport Management, are first on this list.”
Eric Boullier added: “Romain has shown a lot of maturity in the past twelve months both through his GP2 Series victory and his development as third driver with us. We were impressed when he drove for us in the first practice sessions in Abu Dhabi and Brazil.
“We are confident that drafting him in to one of our driver’s seats will help us in our rebuilding process. I would like to thank Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna for their contribution to the team’s performance this year and I wish them all the best for the future.”
Adam Cooper F1 
Whilst it is great to have these two back in F1 again for 2012 (especially Kimi) – I really hope Sutil gets that last awaited seat.
Fingers crossed, he definately deserves it!
Hmm… so where will the very capable Petrov and Senna go? Looks like a golden opportunity for someone.