He’s never been to the States before, so there’s a whole lot more to learn than merely a race circuit, but trackside is where Romain Grosjean’s focus lies.
What’s your experience of the US?
I’ve never been to the USA before, not even for a shopping trip to New York! It’s going to be a new experience in many ways. In actual fact, I did try to make a quick visit after the Canadian Grand Prix but there wasn’t time in the end. I’m sure it will be a big journey of discovery for me; a new country, a new culture and of course of a new race track which is always something I like to experience.
What do you know about motorsport in the States?
NASCAR is of course very famous, and I think we can learn things from the show that it puts on for all the fans, as it’s very impressive. The Indianapolis 500 is another event that everybody knows too. I hope that all the fans we meet in Austin are as enthusiastic as seen at these other events.
Lotus F1 Team have been around the circuit with Jérôme – has he told you about it?
I’ve spoken to Jérôme so I have a little idea of what to expect. On top of that I’ve worked with simulations of the track, and it’s easy for me to play Xbox when I am travelling so I can get an idea from that too. I don’t think it will be the easiest circuit to learn and there are a few fast corners which look like they will be a challenge. The first corner certainly looks to be good fun.
This is the first of the third and final back to back pairing over a nine week period to end the season – how gruelling is this schedule?
It has been hard work as we have travelled to a lot of places. Sometimes you wake up in your hotel and you have to ask yourself which country you are in?! This is the same for the whole team; from the drivers, to the mechanics, engineers, hospitality personnel; everyone. We’re all looking forward to having a rest at the end of the year, but there are an important two races to go; let’s hope we get some more good points.
The last race didn’t go as you wanted…
For me it wasn’t one of the best days, but for the team it was a fantastic day with the win for Kimi. It was the win we were waiting for and it’s unbelievable for the whole team. I was running pretty well and could have finished with good points too. Unfortunately Sergio [Perez] returned to the track in the middle of a battle he was having and he wanted to use the part of the track I was on. There was nothing I could do as you can’t make your car disappear. Sergio was penalised for the incident and it did mean we saw another safety car period. Mark [Webber] was caught up in it too, but he didn’t have any stern words for me this time.
How good was the feeling for the team to finally have a win?
It was unbelievable for the team. It had looked as if the chance of a win was escaping from us, but we’ve kept pushing and the top step was a fantastic reward. Kimi did a fantastic job. The car is there and although this race wasn’t the one we were expecting to win, we did. Hopefully the good results continue, starting in Austin.