Romain Grosjean will drive an F1 car for the first time since his miraculous escape from a fireball crash in the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix on Friday in Italy with Haas, his former team.
The Frenchman’s Haas car split in two and caught fire when it pierced the barriers in a terrifying high-speed crash on the opening lap of the Bahrain race in November 2020.
Astonishingly, after spending 27 seconds in the car following an impact which measured 67G, Grosjean escaped from the flame-engulfed wreckage. His injuries were limited to burns to the back of his hands.
He missed that campaign’s final two races as a result, bringing a slightly premature end to his F1 career after 10 seasons given he had no seat on the grid for 2021. He returned to race in IndyCar just months later and currently competes in sportscars in North America.
However, having long hoped for a farewell run in an F1 car, the 39-year-old Grosjean will finally get that chance at the Mugello circuit on Friday with Haas providing their 2023 challenger, the VF-23, under F1’s Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) rules for him to drive.
“I’m incredibly grateful to Gene Haas and to Ayao Komatsu for inviting me to participate in the TPC at Mugello,” said Grosjean, who raced for the team for five seasons from its 2016 inception.
“To say I’m excited to get back behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car would naturally be an understatement.
“I really can’t believe it’s been almost five years, but to come back and have this outing with my old team is truly something special.
Grosjean is helped away from the crash site by the FIA medical team
The horrifying images and Grosjean’s miracle escape made headlines around the world
Grosjean returned to the Bahrain paddock four days after his accident to thank the crews who helped save his life
“I’m excited to see everyone, I’m sure we’ll spend a bit of time reminiscing about the old days, but I’m also keen to be of use regarding the trackside agenda with the VF-23 – it’s great the team now has the TPC program as part of its on-going development.”
With the accident having denied him a proper swansong in F1, Grosjean revealed Friday’s test would finally give him chance to wear the helmet his three children had designed for him.
“My kids had designed my helmet for what was meant to be my final grand prix in Abu Dhabi back in 2020,” he said.
“I’m at last going to be able to give it a go in a Formula 1 car on Friday.”
‘We’ve talked about making this happen for a long time now’
The test will reunite Grosjean with former Haas colleagues, many of whom now work on the team’s TPC and heritage car programmes.
Grosjean, pictured ahead of the 2020 season, raced 96 times for Haas
Current Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu will serve as Grosjean’s race engineer on the day, reprising a role he held when they first worked together at Renault/Lotus before both joined the start-up American outfit nine years ago.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to be welcoming Romain Grosjean back into a Formula 1 car for the first time in five years but especially proud he’s returning in one of our cars – it’s only fitting,” said Komatsu
“Romain and I have worked together throughout his entire Formula 1 career so this test at Mugello is of particular significance to us both.
“I’m delighted he embraced the opportunity to come and get back behind the wheel with us, a day that’s going to be made extra special by having so many members of the original crew back together to witness it.
“It should be a fun day and knowing Romain as I do, I know he’ll want to give it his all as usual – I’d expect nothing less, not least as we’ve talked about making this happen for a long time now.”
Grosjean has continued to race in the United States in both single-seaters and sportscars
Grosjean started 179 grands prix for Renault/Lotus and Haas between 2009 and 2020, finishing on the podium 10 times and twice achieving a best result of second place.
First testing an IndyCar less than three months after his accident in Bahrain, Grosjean claimed three pole positions and six podiums across four seasons in the US series. He currently serves as a reserve driver to the Prema team in IndyCar and races in North America’s IMSA SportsCar Championship.
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