Romain Grosjean: Stay or Go?

OverTake.gg · Jul 29, 2013

As the F1 silly season rumours are in full swing, and Romain Grosjean had another mixed weekend at the Hungaroring, question marks are still out on the future of the Lotus driver. He was undoubtedly quick in the race, but once again a careless pass on Button and squeezing himself just outside of track limits against Massa meant his weekend was overshadowed by mistakes again.

As Lotus will be looking at their driving line-up for next season, the jury is still out: should Grosjean stay?

He is usually very much on the pace, and like several instances last year, his qualifying pace is often much more promising than that of Kimi Räikkönen: at Budapest he proved this once again. But with so many mistakes tarnishing his reputation, and losing valuable points, can they really afford to keep him in the car?

Eric Boullier has been keen to keep consistency within the team, and there is a lot to be said for maintaining a solid driver line-up and team organisation going into a season with many changes, but the reality of the situation is that there is much more potential out there for Lotus than just the hit and miss exploits of the Frenchman.

The situation for Lotus is simple: they can be championship contenders. Kimi is fighting hard to stay in the hunt for the driver’s championship, and with a solid second driver who can score as consistently as Kimi, and gain regular podiums, then they have a real chance of challenging for the constructor’s championship.

Nico Hulkenberg has been linked to the team, and with the German seeming more and more unlikely to stay at Sauber next year, coupled with his proven track record (many believe he will be a future champ), surely he is a better option? Or the team already have the hugely talented Davide Valsecchi, last year’s GP2 champion who is the team’s third driver and has proved himself in two young driver tests for the team.

What is undeniable is that the Lotus car this year is a regular podium sitting car, and on several weekends could be a race winner too. Grosjean has not performed to the car’s level this year, and with a team that is at the front, it’s puzzling that his performance should be considered acceptable. But perhaps more crucially, with his mistakes still seemingly a part of his racing, the team really can’t afford to carry him much longer if he can’t start putting in some consistency. If Kimi does go to Red Bull, can Lotus seriously expect Grosjean to be their ‘lead’ driver?

Without question Grosjean is quick, and perhaps at a smaller team his erratic behavior might be accepted for his natural speed, but at a top team like Lotus, you would have to say, with a season and a half in their cockpit (that’s not including his first half-season stint with Renault in 2009) that he hasn't done enough to retain that top-level drive, and with so many other promising, and arguably better drivers waiting, perhaps it is time for Lotus to move on without him.

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Tony Holder · Jul 29, 2013

At one point I did feel for him, that move on Massa took balls... Then again bumping into JB was daft. He is making far to many mistakes in races and Lotus can't be expected to keep him on.

Bram Hengeveld · Jul 29, 2013

I would say stay. The guy certainly has raw speed. If Lotus can manage him to become more consistent he might be able to make the next step.

On the other hand, Hulkenberg is an exceptional talent and absolutely deserves a spot in one of the top teams. If I were RBR I wouldn't hesitate a second who to take to replace Webber.

Ho3n3r · Jul 29, 2013

He must stay. One of the fastest current drivers in terms of raw speed. I really think 2014 will be his breakthrough year, where he will be more consistent, and more alert.

Loz Reid · Jul 29, 2013

One more year maybe...

I think he should sign up to RD and learn some racecraft over the winter

Andrew Ford · Jul 29, 2013

i think hulkenburg will be more consistent. i think grosjean can win races and was very unlucky yesterday. two really good races for him in my opinion.

from memory, i think hulkenberg has an impressive C.V prior to f1. He's a winner. He should have pushed himself harder ...he has the talent.a problem may be that renault would surely value a french driver ?

Nox · Jul 29, 2013

I think he's really fast, but it doesn't matter how fast you are if you constantly lose places and get penalties because of causing incidents. If he can stop getting into silly incidents, I'd like to see him stay. If by the end of the season nothing has changed in that regard, I'd say it's time to find a replacement.

Tony Holder · Jul 29, 2013

Yes he is fast, is raw.....but he is losing points for his team, how long will they stick by him?

Chris · Jul 29, 2013

Stay.

You can't teach fast. But you can manage his mistake rate and descision making skills.

Shane Butler · Jul 29, 2013

His accident with Button was just a lack of concentration, but he's been driving in Formula One long enough, I mean he's not a rookie anymore. These accidents are just careless but of course he can improve on his race craft and I really hope he does. It would be a shame not to see him in F1 next year.

Andrew Ford · Jul 29, 2013

Shane Butler said:
His accident with Button was just a lack of concentration, but he's been driving in Formula One long enough, I mean he's not a rookie anymore. These accidents are just careless but of course he can improve on his race craft and I really hope he does. It would be a shame not to see him in F1 next year.

I think he,s too fast not to be in f1. I have to question whether he deserves to still be at lotus.

Metalfreaky · Jul 29, 2013

Stay. He has raw speed and just lacks a bit of experience and probably some self-confidence after last year.

David Jundt · Jul 29, 2013

Andrew Ford said:
i think hulkenburg will be more consistent. i think grosjean can win races and was very unlucky yesterday. two really good races for him in my opinion.

from memory, i think hulkenberg has an impressive C.V prior to f1. He's a winner. He should have pushed himself harder ...he has the talent.a problem may be that renault would surely value a french driver ?

Actuallym only his license is French. He's Swiss actually.

I still remember Spa last year. After the start mayhem, a French journalist said(probably to a Swiss one): "You can have him back".

Typical FrenchxD

Andrew Ford · Jul 29, 2013

David Jundt said:
Actuallym only his license is French. He's Swiss actually.

I still remember Spa last year. After the start mayhem, a French journalist said(probably to a Swiss one): "You can have him back".

Typical FrenchxD

Lol the French will no doubt still claim him if he wins and he always has a French flag near his name.

David Jundt · Jul 29, 2013

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_24_Hours_of_Le_Mans

Funnily enough, if you look at the Flag next to his name, he suddenly was Swiss again.

Confusing enough?

And he has a French license because he gets more support from France than from Switzerland(race ban, remember? Nobody cares enough here?). Last but not least, he's sponsored by Total. He wouldn't be if he was taking part as a Swiss I'd guess.

Loz Reid · Jul 29, 2013

he appeared to make a good move on massa (shame about the line) but one does wonder if massa and other drivers are less aggressive when he is near in fear of a collision?

Aidan Keranen · Jul 29, 2013

I will cry if he goes.
But seriously I feel he has the race in him to be able to win, just whether that is within the next year or not. If he can win a race, or at least more podiums, I think he'll be a good choice still.

Terry Rock · Jul 30, 2013

We tend to sometimes forget that these guys are not on a normal drive...they're actually racing.
You can fault Grosjean for a lot of things, this weekend...not so much. Even Massa went on record and said that the penalty was not warranted.
I thought the penalty...given the circumstances, was a really bad call.
Some may say he could have left it until later.
That's not how racers think.
We go for any gap that presents itself and at any place we think we can pull it off... without going off in a ball of smoke and fire.