Oct.15 (GMM) The next challenge for Team Lotus is to catch up with F1's established teams, according to technical boss Mike Gascoyne.

The Tony Fernandes-led squad entered the sport last year as one of the all-new small teams alongside Virgin and HRT.

"We've left the other new teams well behind, which is great," Gascoyne told the Guardian. "But we are not quite racing the team in front and we are not scoring our first points."

Boss and owner Fernandes said last week that Gascoyne is on notice should Team Lotus not take the next step in 2012.

"Clearly if we don't take another step forward next year then we all need to ask ourselves some difficult questions. Am I the right team principal, is Mike the right chief technical officer?" he told F1's official website.

Gascoyne, who has worked with grandee teams Renault and Toyota in the past, said the challenge is a big one.

"You're not going to come in, flick a switch and start beating the established teams," he insisted. "We have to get all the people in place. They (the big teams) have all of that.

"If you don't do all the hard yards you'll never get there. There's no short cut, that's the problem when you come in. We've got to build a team as well as the car."

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