Lotus Racing have been in the news far too much this week already, but today they have tried to offer up a bit of a feel-good story with the confirmation that Mike Gascoyne will be sticking with them until 2015 at least.

Not only is this good personnel news for the team, it also shows that they have no signs of giving in to any legal wranglings from outside the paddock.

Speaking about the deal, Mike said:

Having started the team from scratch with Tony it was always my intention to finish my career here, so it’s great to have formally agreed a five year deal. We’ve had a great start to our partnership together, and I’m looking forward to continuing that for the next five years, and even beyond that.

- Mike Gascoyne

They have certainly had the best start of the new teams this year, from humble beginnings to the important tenth spot in the championship. It looks like they can keep that position until the end of the year, and build on the momentum even more in 2011.

Mike’s five year deal is a major announcement for the whole Lotus Racing team. It shows just how serious we are, not only about how far ahead we are setting our aspirations, but also as a reward to Mike for the incredibly hard work he and the team have already put in to get us from literally four people back in September ’09 to our current position as a serious F1 player with a very bright future ahead of us.

- Tony Fernandes

Personally, I think this is great because I love the insight that Mike can give us from the pit wall. He's often tweeting throughout each race, giving updates on the driver positions, whether they are pitting, and if they are suffering any problems. For example:

Heikki was hit by buemi and as he spun the fuel take prv cracked open and caused an airbox fire

mikegascoyne

Any excuse to mention Fireman Heikki, as well. So, Mike has made a good impression this year. However, earlier in the comments, Journeyer did point out one thing:

Mike Gascoyne has committed to five more years with Lotus. Five years?! It's usually a miracle if he stays at a team for 3 years, never mind 5.

- Journeyer

He has worked for McLaren, Tyrrell, Sauber, Jordan, Benetton, Renault, Toyota, Spyker, Force India, and now Lotus. Not all of them were happy departures, but Gascoyne does seem to have found a fit at his current position. We'll chalk all the others up to experience.