Romain Grosjean, Haas, Monza, 2019

Grosjean secures new Haas deal for 2020

2020 F1 season

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Haas has confirmed Romain Grosjean will remain at Haas next year, ending speculation he might lose his seat to Nico Hulkenberg.

Grosjean, who has driven for the team since it entered Formula 1 in 2016, will start his fifth season for Haas. Team principal Guenther Steiner said Grosjean’s experience was a key factor in him retaining his drive.

“Experience, and the need for it, has been one of the cornerstones of Haas F1 Team,” said Steiner. “With Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen racing for the team in 2020, we continue to have a driver lineup that offers us a solid platform to continue our growth.

“Their understanding of how we work as a team, and our knowledge of what they can deliver behind the wheel, gives us a valued continuity and a strong foundation to keep building our team around.”

After finishing fifth in the championship last year Haas has endured a disappointing start to 2019 and lies ninth out of the 10 teams.

“It’s been a tough year for us in 2019 with the fluctuation in performance of the VF-19, but our ability to tap into our combined experiences will help us learn, improve, and move forward as a unit in 2020,” Steiner added.

Next year will be the 10th season Grosjean has competed in Formula 1. “I’ve always stated that it was my desire to remain with Haas F1 Team and keep building on the team’s accomplishments,” he said.

“Having been here since the very beginning and seen the work both Gene Haas and Guenther Steiner put into the team to make it competitive, I’m naturally very happy to continue to be a part of that.”

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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90 comments on “Grosjean secures new Haas deal for 2020”

  1. I really hope Hulk gets this seat in Alfa for next year…

    1. Which might be for only 1 year and that is IF Kimi retires

      1. They could dump Gio if he doesn’t show more promise.

        1. I doubt Ferrari will dump Gio, unless he begins to drive the car in the opposite direction.
          Lets compare Gio to Gasly. No lets compare him to the other rookies.
          He makes too many mistakes and is consistently out performed by his team mate, yet he will get another year in the car.

          1. I don’t think Ferrari have much if any interest having gio around if he continues at this level. Kimi is pretty good benchmark for any team mate and so far that benchmark for gio simply says: not good enough. But then who could ferrari put into gio’s place? Mick Schumacher is an obvious choice but mick needs to finish p6 in F2 to have enough super license points for f1. Which seems very unlikely.

    2. I just can’t understand this decision, this team line up is in my opinion by far the worst on the grid, Hulkenberg is a much better driver in every way, he is consistent, he is a better racer, has the experience and a level head needed to help drive the team forward. There are better drivers in Formula E who havnt been able to get a seat in Formula 1, I dont understand how Grosjean still had a seat after a couple of years racing, never mind 10

    3. it is a great mystery why Haas and Steiner hold on to Grosjean.
      For him they turned down Leclerc and now Hulk.
      I wouldn’t want to say anything nasty, but even my innocent mind is turning to un-savoury shenanigans…
      (God forbid)

    4. I think it’s time for Sutil II: the sequel to finally go home and stop ruining podium positions for the teams he’s driving for.

      The guy had enough chances to prove himself and he didn’t. Not even once.

      1. Hulkenberg may have missed his podium chances, but he has been a solid driver, has had a decent record against his teammates and has had a good career overall.

        If you can’t see that (simple facts, btw) and are capable of judging him only on the basis of the number of podiums he has scored, then you are the only one that needs to go home. Bye.

        Also, “stop ruining podium positions for the team he’s driving for?” Is that all you can see? No mention of the points he has scored for his teams day in and day out?

        1. @neutronstar I would assume kuvemar is talking about Grosjean.

          1. @shimks Talking about Grosjean while replying to a comment specifically about Hulkenberg and bringing up his podium curse in the process?

            There are plenty of Hulkenberg doubters, it’s nothing surprsing.

        2. He’s talking about Grosjean. Although Hulkenberg IS one of the most over hyped drivers on the grid… been listening to people praise him for 10 years now… still waiting to see why.

          ….BYE!

          1. @Xcm

            ….BYE!

            The original comment is about Hulkenberg and Alfa, just wanted to remind you before you leave. Also, you don’t really need to yell your goodbyes.

            Although Hulkenberg IS one of the most over hyped drivers on the grid… been listening to people praise him for 10 years now… still waiting to see why.

            Fair comment, and you’re entitled to your opinion. But do keep in mind that skepticism towards Hulkenberg is nothing new or special and has been a part of his image as an F1 driver for a long long time; ever since his podiumless streak started becoming noticeable. You only need to look at recent comments about on him on the F1 reddit to realize that you are just one of his many, many skeptics.

            I’ve quietly watched people criticize him in the past, and I’m okay with people calling him overrated. But stuff like Sutil 2.0, and “ruins podium chances for the teams he is driving”, and basically implying that he “needs to go home” because he has blown his chances, I’m not okay with. Hulkenberg may not be god’s gift, but he has been a solid driver in his career, and is a solid enough driver today (3 points behind Ricciardo in the standings).

            If someone implies that he doesn’t deserve to be in F1 because he doesn’t have any podiums, I am gonna have a go at that person.

          2. He’s talking about hulkenberg, don’t you see he mentioned podiums? Grosjean got many podiums in the past and he can’t really get any with current car, thought it was pretty obvious it’s hulkenberg who keeps squandering podium chances.

          3. Aaditya, totally agree.

  2. OK, when will he implode and get into the Grosjean funk of depression next season?
    I’ll take round 5, Zandvoort

  3. I guess having identified the error in development must have helped him

    1. You are right @tango, people tend to overlook that fact.

  4. I understand and kinda agree. They have all sort of issues to fix and drivers are not their worst problem, having stability in that sector may be a good thing for them.

    1. I disagree – when you have an inconsistent car package, the last thing you need is an inconsistent driver. Grosjean is probably the biggest F1 yo-yo I’ve ever witnessed – he likes to blame the brakes, aero, suspension, track and Ericsson, but the reality is that he is still the one putting it in the wall more often than not…

      1. @joeypropane, why do posters like yourself still keep repeating the lie about Grosjean blaming Ericsson for Baku? I know that people keep repeating it because it’s something that fits into the image they want to create of Grosjean, but it has been repeatedly debunked that he never said such a thing.

        Equally, with regards to the complaints he made about the brakes in the past, Grosjean wasn’t the only one complaining about the brakes that Brembo was supplying that year – when you are retiring from a race because the brake discs has completely disintegrated, I think a lot of drivers would be complaining about the brakes.
        Magnussen was also complaining of brake issues that season, and Massa was also reporting problems with Brembo’s brake discs that season, in particular that the discs were significantly more prone to problems with glazing and irregular surface temperatures. People might have focussed on Grosjean’s complaints, but he was just one of multiple dissatisfied drivers that season.

        1. @anon Why do posters like yourself continue to post without registering?

          You don’t need to be watching F1 long to know that Grosjean’s a habitual whinger, or at least complains the loudest – wearing his heart on his sleeve (many F1 drivers whine, watch F1 driver’s meetings). I also don’t have a race in recent memory where Grosjean wasn’t mediocre or a disappointment. But feel free to prove me wrong.

          In his Renault days I felt he deserved a second chance. His time at Lotus was fun to watch and he was legitimately quick on his day. I just don’t think he ever shook his Crashjean guise.

          1. Grosjean has hardly made any big mistakes in qualifying or the races this year. And even the 2nd half of last year. You have to go back over a year now that Grosjean was constantly crashing. He made an odd mistake in practice this year, but Hamilton has crashed in practice, and so has Verstappen. Pace wise, Grosjean has usually been far quicker on race day compared to Magnussen when they both finished. This year finishing ahead in 5 out of 7 races. Two of these being over an entire minute ahead. The car is just awful this year for either of them to look good, but Grosjean is looking better than Magnussen and in my opinion has not been as unreasonable in terms of what he says on the radio as Magnussen.

    2. Yep, and the above article certainly reads like an understandable choice for continuity @m-bagattini, can’t really fault that.

    3. Sometimes teams need to go for a change and fresh air.
      Looking at McLaren, the pairing Alonso-Vandoorne looked much better on paper than the current line up. Yet it is difficult to argue that McLaren as a team has moved forward a lot this year.
      I believe Haas needs a similar shake up to sort out their problems. Too many incidents involving their drivers and fresh feedbacks could be welcome to forget the past and move forward.

  5. I just opened my popcorn and waiting to read more comments…

    1. that’s a weird thing to do.

    2. Eat it, before it loses it taste.

      1. Well said, eat it when it’s fresh.

    3. I went straight for the comments too!

  6. Ooh, that’s not good news for the Hulk. Giovinazzi being dropped might be his last hope.

    1. @phylyp

      Agree. I’m surprised that Haas chose the same uninspiring line up for next year. Hulk would have been an upgrade on either of their drivers.

      Gio is his last hope right now… unless the Hulk decides on Williams, which will be a massive demotion for him.

  7. Jose Lopes da Silva
    19th September 2019, 9:34

    I’m with @tango. Grosjean identified correctly what was wrong with the car, and delivered performance based on that. I’ts kind of fair from Haas to keep him. We are just judging that spin in Silverstone.

    1. I’d also add, to be cheaky, who would you trust to bring in the odd podium if or when stars align ? Grosjean or Hulk ?

      1. Jose Lopes da Silva
        19th September 2019, 10:54

        I won’t go that way… Hulkenberg was remarkably consistent during these last seasons. I don’t think that one should be hired for the odd podium. I don’t think that makes Stroll worthy of being in F1, for instance. Likewise, I think Albon’s promotion instead of Kvyat was reasonable and obvious.
        But in Haas place I would probably do the same and keep Grosjean for 2020, for sure.

      2. There are a lot of stars in the galaxy, but the need to align every one of them makes it impossible for Haas to get a podium with this pair.

        1. And you may need to align galaxies too when you get Hulk in. This dude just gives away podium places.

          1. Ahah, both of you are right!

  8. Such a waste. He is just hopeless. I actually think that all these car problems this year are in big part caused by the fact that Grosjean wanted the “old lady” back. Both drivers should just trust the engineers and together evolve the car, instead each of them had their own toy going further backwards with every race.

    1. You are missing the point: Grosjean is as fast as Magnussen in the old car, meaning that the “evolutions” are useless as they don’t improve said car. Meaning Haas has wasted time and money.

      1. Was even faster than mag with old car!

  9. It’s fine. I’m fine. Ferrari will totally kick out Vettel as why would they pay those wages for a #2 driver, and then get Hulk in as the #2. And then Vettel will go back to Red Bull. I’m not deluded. This is fine. (realistically Alfa is still a shot).

    1. @hugh11 @alec-glen – if Vettel leaves, I expect Ferrari to make furious pizza sounds in Ricciardo’s direction. I don’t think they’d look at the Hulk unless Ricciardo rebuffs them.

      1. Eh, if they do go for Danny Ricc, then Renault will do soppy eyes at Hulk and if he has no other option he’ll go back.

        1. @phylyp Yeah, great point.
          @hugh11 Another good point!

  10. I might be alone with this opinion, but this makes me happy.

    1. You’re not. I like Grosjean. He makes racing fun and unpredictable.

    2. I agree. When he gets a clear run with no car issues, he has usually be better in the races than Magnussen.

      He’s made some poor mistakes but I really don’t understand the vitriol that seems to be aimed in his direction. Haas must see what he is capable of.

    3. You are not alone, I’m happy to still have GRO around and for him to remain with Haas. He has his issues, but they’re not going to land a sure-bet driver to replace him long term and I don’t want them taking on drivers for a 1-year rental ahead of losing them to a top-tier team. When they’re back on more solid technical footing and consistently competitive (at least in the mid pack), they can start thinking about taking more chances with the drivers.

  11. isaac (@invincibleisaac)
    19th September 2019, 9:48

    Can’t say I’m thrilled about this. Does this leave any options for Hulkenberg for 2020?

    1. My most hopeful guess is potentially Ferrari if Vettel steps away? I could imagine them wanting an experienced driver to partner with Leclerc at least.

      1. I think Vettel walks away from F1, Daniel goes to Ferrari (I read somewhere that Daniel’s contract has an exit clause for. Ferrari seat) and Hulkenburg incredibly, after everything stays at Renault.

        1. Hulkenburg incredibly, after everything stays at Renault

          But ends up switching cars :) Similar to how Kvyat went to the other side of the garage at the end of 2017.

          1. @phylyp Not really given this is about two different seasons rather than something that would happen within the same season.

      2. The full tinfoil hat is going on for this one. Hear me out.
        Ferrari make Leclerc their #1 driver. As a 4-time world champion, Vettel isn’t having it, tells them where they can shove it, and goes back to Red Bull where Horner will make space for him. In this scenario, Albon and Kvyat are at Toro Rosso for 2020. Then, for 2021, either Verstappen or Vettel go to Mercedes, Bottas goes … somewhere … Maybe Hamilton retires allowing Russell a seat too (maybe for 2022, Hamilton could’ve broken all Schumacher’s records by then, with Russell having a year at a more competitive team for 2021), who knows, but one of the Red Bull drivers goes to Mercedes, and the other stays, with Albon being promoted again for 2021.
        Okay. Back to Ferrari. They sign free agent Hulkenberg up on a year-by-year contract, as a backup to Leclerc, similarly to what they’ve done for so many years now (Barrichello/Massa/Raikkonen the prime examples from this century), putting all their eggs in one basket for the championship, with the other guy there to help his teammate and deny points to the other title contenders. Hulk will be good for this role. This line-up continues until one of Shwartzman/Schumacher/Armstrong or whoever from their academy is ready for a seat at the top dogs, maybe 2023?

  12. unbelievable

  13. I guess Hulk has already secured a seat at another team (Alfa romeo). If i was Steiner i would not loose the chance to recruit an arguably better than Grosjean driver. If Hass was not looking for another driver they would sign Romain earlier and not for only one year.

  14. Hulkenberg: Williams or… Red Bull at a certain moment of next season, if Albon and Kvyat fail. Only other option is Alfa Romeo but not from the beginning, as Giovinazzi – Raikkonen is confirmed. Also, no rookie next year, or, again, in Williams if someone from F.2 or Indycar brings a huge sponsor. But looks like everyone is expecting 2021. If Mick Schumacher delivers, one Alfa seat is waiting for him.

    1. @Ambrogio Isgro Gio is so far only confirmed by his father, not yet by the team.

  15. What?????

    Worst driver in F1.

  16. There are rumours on polish forums that Kubica will announce this weekend that he will quit Williams. Maybe Hulk will go back there? I’m sure Williams would welcome that…. unless of course it’s all about money with them as in the last 3 seasons.

    1. Most likely Nicholas Latifi will replace Kubica.

    2. Kubica out next year is confirmed in the meantime. But I agree with @silfen they will go for Latifi

  17. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Haas learn nothing in last 2 years. Pathetic line up for another season.

  18. Crazy, grosjean hasn’t done nearly enough on track, maybe his off track stuff has saved him, if they wanted experience mind it’s not like Hulkenberg is lacking, you ever get the feeling there’s something about hulk that teams aren’t keen on?

    1. That’s a good point. I don’t know if it’s true, but I often heard that Napoleaon didn’t want to work with unlucky guys… Maybe something along those lines ?

  19. A pity for Hulk. Williams is effectively his only chance now if there’s any truth to Gio’s father’s words.

  20. Imho it was Hulkenberg who turned Haas down. Apparently they couldn’t agree to a contract.

    Going to Williams is unlikely as they need money and are likely hiring Latifi for next season. And Alfa Romeo is also unlikely as Giovinazzi is there to keep the seat for a Ferrari junior, likely Mick Schumacher or Robert Shwarzmann in 2021.

  21. Bottas at merc and Grosjean at Haas.
    Two inexplicable decisions, esp with other options available.
    We will all have long white beards and living in colonies on Mars, and GRO and BOT will still be in F1.

    1. We will all have long white beards and living in colonies on Mars, and GRO and BOT will still be in F1.

      This made me smile! :D

  22. Can only be salary related. Come on.

    Experience? You can’t say Hulkenberg is lacking in that area.

    Salary? According to an article at the start of the year, Grosjean gets about 40% compared to Hulkenberg’s.

    I guess Grosjean trumps him in terms of results, but that was during a whole different era.

  23. Keeping Grosjean when Hulkenberg was available is a confusing choice. Grosjean’s always been a guy that seems to either get a very good result or a very terrible one and nothing in between, but for the last two years it’s been mostly very terrible.

    I hope Hulkenberg gets a seat. I’ve always thought of him as a particularly good driver, really deserving of a top car but never seemingly able to land one. Certainly more deserving of it than Grosjean. Perhaps now it’s too late, but I hope not.

  24. One of Haas problems is the inability of their drivers to maximize the car’s potential. Ferrari were desperate to put Leclerc in Haas back in 2018 but they resisted so much that it pushed Marchionne to return Alfa Romeo to the sport and sign Leclerc.
    It was clear that the Haas driver line up won’t get them too far and there were plenty of missed opportunities in the last couple of years.

    With Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen racing for the team in 2020, we continue to have a driver lineup that offers us a solid platform to continue our growth

    With Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen racing for the team in 2020, Haas continue to have the most uninspiring driver line up on the grid.

  25. Slightly surprised by that if I’m honest. While I’m far from Grosjean’s biggest fan, I acknowledge that ‘on his day’ he’s a very fast driver. His problem is he’s always described as an ‘on his day’ driver, because when he’s off he’s off. But Haas obviously know what they’re getting. It would be a shame if Hulkenberg didn’t get a decent seat for next year. Fingers crossed for Alfa. His chances are at least improved by the fact F2 isn’t exactly glowing with talent at the moment. Emphasised by the fact runaway leader de Vries has signed for the pedestrian Formula E.

    1. I agree. This is a sensible take on things.

  26. Best news so far.

  27. Zzzzzzzz. Wake me when you put Busch, Rahal, Newgarden, Daly, Rossi, or any number of star American drivers that would make you relavent in your own country. Instead, you chose a crybaby. Good luck with that.

    1. Crybaby sums it up perfectly. His post-incident radio transmissions are cringe worthy!

  28. Sounds like they’re accepting mediocrity. I guess that’s all a part of their F1 model.

  29. It was half a gest. But if Hulk asked for much more money than Grosjean, then it kinda makes sense.

    You have a driver you know well, who still is your team’s historical top scrorer, who gave you credibility on your first year, who scored your best results, who’s a podium winner (all right, in different era), and who can still on a lap give you the best time the car is capable of, and actually gives you good feedback… But who often takes your car and gives you scraps back (and has not been scoring points lately).

    But then you can only replace him with a driver who could be more stable, but has never stayed long at a team, who is potentially more expensive and has never gotten a podium when 4 different team mates have.

    One has spent his career being derided, another has been lauded. But how much does that weight ?

  30. I have lost all faith in Haas now. They are just gluttons for punishment. I didn’t expect them to take Hulkenberg either, but I really thought they had learnt their lesson from last year. GRO is just inconsistent. OK, this years car is a dog, but that doesn’t excuse Haas. Enjoy another year of your drivers running into each other and scoring even less points. Ugh.

  31. WTH Gunther?

  32. Probably they had been drinking too much of their former sponsors nauseating sugarwater while making this decision. Or they had William Storey roll a dice during a coke binge or something.
    Otherwise I can not explain this choice…

  33. I wonder if they have some termination clause in this contract…

  34. I simply cannot comprehend how any team principal would make this decision! Grosjean is driver with poor judgement and even worse attitude. I used to be a big fan of his and I gave him (from my armchair) chance after chance after chance. But the guy really is an imbécile.

  35. Signing two unstable drivers over and over again, not to mention that shady title sponsor.

    Gene Haas must be getting fed up with this venture quite quickly.
    He’s probably pulling plug in the next couple of seasons. And my bet is that he will find a way to criticize the sport as being elitist even with his team taking as many wrong paths as it can.

  36. Not relevant to the signing but check out Julien Febreau’s last tweets (french f1 journalist). It’s a nice gesture from RoGro.

    Btw I’m wondering how much the human aspect counts in a otherwise performance driven world like f1 ? Thinking of the examples of Werhlein, Andretti et al.

  37. 80 comments in well under 24 hours. That is an F1 caliber performance if there ever was one.
    Not that I am in-the-loop or tracking this, but Steiner has mentioned, on several occasions, that Grosjean is quick, and we have all heard the lament, “it is easier to make a fast driver reliable than make a reliable one fast.”
    Somewhat predictable that they have kept him on, but it wouldn’t have been my first choice.
    If Haas tosses in the towel, my guess is he will sell the operation as a package. Seems there is some interest out there and a functioning team with infrastructure is a much more realistic approach than the from-scratch operation.
    My bet, Gene Haas is not a quitter and he won’t give up.

  38. The one message delivered in this decision is HAAS is happy to accept mediocrity in the lower end of the F1 midfield.

    Grosjean and Magnussen have consistently proved over the past few seasons they aren’t the driver pair to take the team forward and I don’t just mean the constant crashing into one another. Whilst individually I don’t have the same harsh criticism of Grosjean and Magnussen as others do (though I will say I don’t see either as world champ material), the bigger problem is they have shown no ability to drive car development forward together. It’s been a similar tale the past few seasons, HAAS starts strong(ish) and falls away and then there is no consistency between the drivers of what they publicly say they need (to the point where Grosjean and Magnussen have run different spec cars for half this season).

    This decision leads me to think HAAS are glued to where they are. I don’t think Hulkenberg was necessarily the answer, but maintaining status quo will do just that….maintain status quo on performance.

  39. Im actually happy for Grosjean. As for Hulk missing out, i think had they of got rid of Grosjean then a younger rookie driver maybe would of made more sense.

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