Grosjean: “F1, the absolute summit”

Romain, you are back in the paddock with a wetsuit. Can you explain to us under what conditions?
I come back with great pleasure. The GP2 is the antechamber of the F1. Driving in this car is extremely pleasant. I am also coming back to help the Dams team understand why they are unable to achieve the objectives they set at the start of the year, to try to find solutions with the experience I was able to acquire in GP2 and F1. We will try to have a constructive weekend in terms of settings and progress and, for me, to have fun and obtain a good result.

What are your priorities this weekend? Do you have ambitions?
You must first understand what is happening, help the team to progress and find a good technical path. If there is a result, it will be the icing on the cake. For the moment, it's a one shot. Anyway, the next two GP2 races, I have the GT1 World Championship at the same time. This remains the number 1 objective of the season. Things are being added around so I'm super happy, because riding is my passion above all. This is just a one shot so I'm going to enjoy every second of it.

You come back to be around the world of F1. Will you pay attention to it?
I?ll definitely have an eye in the F1 paddock. I'm going to try to go and see people because I don't hide the fact that my desire is to return to the highest level. The best way to get back to it is to win the races I take part in, while having fun. I will obviously be focused on GP2 but I will go for short laps, see what's going on.

Do you have a lot of activity in the middle of the season, with lots of different ruffles?
It's true ! GT1, Auto GP, GP2 this weekend; next week, GT1 and the 24 Hours of Spa in GT2. Each time, I have so much fun, I have fun. It's going well, so it's obviously even more pleasant.

Is your goal to complete your GT1 and Auto GP commitments?
Yes why not. For the Auto GP, we will discuss it with the Dams team (with whom he races in GP2 and Auto GP) this weekend. The objective remains to be GT1 World Champion at the end of the year. I change teammates from the next race, with the arrival of Neel Jani (teammate of Nicolas Cheers en Endurance LMP1). We're going to try to make up for the little delay I had at Le Castellet. There is no date clash with the Auto GP, so we will see on that front.

Despite your youth, you were able to discover disciplines other than F1. Did it allow you to open up to these categories and see that there was more than just F1?
It's not just F1, that's clear, even if it remains the summit. I had a blast in Andros, I'm having a blast in GT1 and Auto GP. Here, I think GP2 is going to be great. I have fun in other disciplines, it's not just F1, but it remains the absolute summit.

How did you discover these disciplines?
I was like a student who finished university, entering the world of work, the “real world”. I did a little bit of F1 and, after F1, I said to myself “what do we do now?” », a bit like an academic who finishes his studies, who has his diploma and who tells himself that he must return to working life. We discover things, we make certain choices, we look left and right, while having the stated objective of returning to the highest level. But I have fun elsewhere, I enjoy myself and then you have to live too, so it's not negligible.

Do you plan to return to Andros Trophy ?
Andros, I will return there. The Dubourg team was great. I had a very good feeling and, what's more, the results were there. So I will return there with great, great pleasure.

In GT1, how do you see your season?
In the last races, it was harder, we lacked performance with the car. We hope to have a little help with the regulations. Then, I change teammates so I hope that will allow us to be ranked a little higher on the timesheet in qualifying, to be able to go for the win in race 2.

What was your pleasure in the last races in which you were able to participate? Prove your ability to adapt very quickly?
No, just pilot. Anyway, when I have fun, the rest follows. I know what I'm worth, without being pretentious either. I think I have proven myself. I rubbed Fernando Alonso, who is an extraordinary driver, as a teammate and I was not ridiculous. Now I enjoy getting into a car and that's how it works best.

So you have no regrets about your experience in F1?
No, I do not regret anything. In any case, we don?t even have a choice. The day he asked me to join F1, answering “no” was not even an option. I don't regret anything about this experience, nor what I did afterwards, sportingly speaking.

Find the interview with Romain Grosjean in AUTOhebdo, on sale this week, in which the driver talks about his experience in F1, his desire to return to the discipline…