Romain Grosjean tries to squash possible fireworks at new home: 'I think we can make it work'
Romain Grosjean doesn’t want to talk about the past but he wants to make one thing clear.
The 37-year-old, who is joining his third IndyCar team during his four seasons in the series, doesn’t feel the NBC cameras and radio broadcasts that occasionally caught him in a war of words with his former team, Andretti Global, told the full story of a relationship gone wrong.
Nor, Grosjean says, does he think reporters have relayed the full scope of why his new bosses, Ricardo Juncos and Brad Hollinger, split with Callum Ilott, the young British driver who, up until a week ago, had been a foundational piece to the team’s rise from a largely forgotten program.
And it’s why, Grosjean told IndyStar on Thursday morning in an exclusive interview, the Swiss-born Frenchman believes this marriage of two of the sport’s most openly passionate figures – he and Juncos – combined with what has proven at times to be a vitriolic team fanbase, isn’t doomed from the start.
“I think sometimes if you listen to one or two guys, you don’t get the truth,” Grosjean said, who took issue with an IndyStar story earlier this week that referenced the driver publicly dressing down team officials, engineers and crew members. “I got at least seven texts (since the confirmation of his new home) from my old guys being super happy and excited (for me).
“One even said he felt like he was cheating on his girlfriend for working on the No. 28 car without me in it, so I think things all depend on who you talk to. I am who I am, and I think Ricardo is who he is, and I think we can make it work. I think there will be some days where we disagree, along with some flames, but that doesn’t mean 10 minutes later things won’t be all good.”
But that was all Grosjean would say in reference to his old home, which opted not to extend his two-year contract that took Grosjean from a lovable low-budget team (Dale Coyne Racing) where he landed three podiums in a part-time season, to one of IndyCar’s most high-profile rides: Andretti’s No. 28 DHL Honda. There, Grosjean found three more podiums and two more poles, at times looking as if he was the fastest driver on the grid. But for a multitude of reasons, with blame shared by Grosjean and the team, those on the No. 28 couldn’t often enough pair speed, execution and consistency across a race weekend.
Last month, Grosjean posted on social media that he was initiating arbitration proceedings against Andretti Global in what is believed to be a disagreement stemming from contract negotiations in the spring where a new deal was written up, signed by Grosjean and sent to Michael Andretti and company to be formally completed.
It never was, and after Grosjean followed a pair of back-to-back runner-up finishes with eight consecutive races without a top-10, one of IndyCar’s early-season feel-good stories disintegrated.
“He’s fast. Pleasant guy, great guy, but when it’s negative comments about the team, yeah, that’s frustrating,” Michael Andretti told IndyStar of Grosjean’s antics in July. “The guys take it to heart, because their busting their asses.
“I think Romain sometimes has a problem controlling his adrenaline. Once he calms down, he’s more measured, but in the heat of the moment, I think he has a problem. It’s probably been his biggest downfall while he’s been here.”
Midway through his first season with Andretti, Grosjean found himself in the center of simmering intra-team tension that exploded at Mid-Ohio with multiple teammates running into each other, name-calling, heated confrontations and a team-wide ‘come to Jesus’ meeting. Though sometimes the frustration Grosjean was caught airing publicly was more with traffic in qualifying and less on the performance of the car or the team, the back-and-forth NBC cameras caught between Grosjean and engineer Olivier Boisson and team manager Josh Freund the weekend of the season’s penultimate race was evidence patience was wearing thin on both sides.
Insider: Here's where the IndyCar Silly Season, Indy 500 field sits for 2024
So how does Grosjean, in a new home with fewer resources, less experience, fewer teammates and a team-wide best finish of 5th, run by a co-owner in Juncos who has proven he charts his own path, hope to avoid the negative energy that too often characterized his Andretti stint?
Well… he’s not exactly sure yet. The ‘how’ of it all remains to be seen, having only shared a handful of conversations with Juncos over the final two weekends of this past season when the pair’s talks began. But Grosjean said he has no reason to think both sides won’t be able to find common ground.
“What I really like about Ricardo is his passion and 100% commitment to the team. I’m a bit the same way, and I like that,” Grosjean said. “We definitely have two Latin temperaments, and I’m not an easy guy to work with, but I think if you understand me and get me the right way, I think it can work really well.
“I’m not a boring, non-emotional guy, but if everything works well and we all work together, I don’t think there’s anything that can slow us down.”
'I always land on my feet': Grosjean lands at Juncos Hollinger Racing after Andretti Global exit
Grosjean has long been clear though: There will be no compromise on who he is and how he goes about his work. His fame as an ex-F1 driver who became a Netflix star when ‘Drive to Survive’ aired its episode of the former Haas driver narrowly escaping a violent, fiery crash in Bahrain, has made him a marketable driver known worldwide – potentially a perfect fit for a team receiving an offload of Arrow McLaren’s sponsors in the sides’ strategic alliance in IndyCar in 2024.
That magnetic personality and pole-winning speed are driven by the same energy that sometimes leads to outbursts – even if they’re not directed at anyone and simply need to happen so Grosjean can move on.
Ilott, who Grosjean replaces, was nowhere near as volcanic in his frustrations, but he was no less unafraid to speak his mind and level with the media during the team’s successes and struggles. That frankness – whether it be in his innocence in his two run-ins with teammate Agustin Canapino on-track or the issues he faced in May he blamed on a poor-handling car – and his refusal to keep to the company line moving forward is said to have been a major factor in the split.
The driver hired to fill his vacancy made clear in May to reporters: “You won’t change me.”
“I’ve been like this all my career,” Grosjean continued. “That means on some days I’m incredible, and some days I’m not that good, but it’s my passion for it. The day I’m not frustrated being blocked in qualifying is the day it’s time to say ‘bye’ to you guys.
“I used to be an (expletive) as a teammate, and I think I’ve gotten much better at it. When you grow up in Europe, there’s only one guy that’s going to make it through, so everything you’ve been taught is to destroy your teammates.”
Insider: What happens next for Callum Ilott, Juncos Hollinger Racing after shocking split
For what it’s worth, at a smaller team that didn’t deliver him so much spotlight during his part-time rookie year with Coyne, Grosjean managed to finish 15th in the championship while skipping the double-points 500 and two other oval races. His pair of full seasons with Andretti left him only marginally better in 13th both times.
Whether there could, in fact, be something to him gelling better with a team where expectations are lower and where he’ll be expected to lead and drive development is unclear, but Grosjean said Thursday he was both invigorated by the project aspect of it all, as well as the fact he’d simply found a place to race full-time. Late this summer, that was by no means a guarantee.
“I’ve seen (JHR) coming through the last few years, and though they have less experience than (Dale Coyne Racing), that’s perhaps a lot of what I can bring, so we can continue building some of the momentum they’ve already started creating,” he said. “I feel like there’s a good opportunity to come here and have some fun.
“It was definitely a decision to make, and time will tell if it was the right one or not. From what I’ve read and what’s been said on the outside, I don’t think it’s all true on what was happening inside (JHR) in the past. Next year, I’ll try and improve myself, and I know we can work well together.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IndyCar: Romain Grosjean eyeing fresh start with Juncos Hollinger Racing
