Romain Grosjean — His Career in Pictures
After 181 starts over 13 years, the Frenchman's career came to a close this year, sadly two races early. Let’s relive the highs and lows of his career.
In 2008, Grosjean was the test driver for Renault, testing their 2007 challenger many times. He is pictured above demonstrating the car at Silverstone
2009 brought Grosjean a full-time seat as Nelson Piquet Jr.’s replacement. It was a tough year for him though, scoring no championship points with a best finish of 13th.
2010 was a fruitless year, but in 2011 he won the GP2 series and was free practice driver for Lotus Renault in the final two rounds.
2012 saw him promoted to a race seat alongside Kimi Raikkonen, and he performed. Eighth in the title was complemented by three podiums, third at Bahrain and Hungary, and second in Canada.
In 2013 Grosjean did even better. Six podiums placing him seventh in the title. 132 points would be the most he would get in his career, and in his next seven years, he would only amass 163.
2014 was a disaster for lotus, and as such, a disaster for Grosjean. The new hybrid Renault power units were underpowered, and the new car wasn't exactly very flash either. He only scored 8 points.
The new E23 was better looking, but not exactly quick. The team was cash strapped and it showed, but Grosjean put a spectacular performance in at Spa to secure what would be his final podium.
2016 brought a team change for the Frenchman, moving to the new Haas team. The start of the season looked promising, with a fantastic sixth in Australia backed up by fifth in Bahrain. The team's brake problems then showed though, and Grosjean would only score one point in the second half of the season.
2017 wasn’t a bad year for Grosjean, but it was reasonably forgettable. What wasn't forgotten though was when he hit a drain cover in practice for the Malaysian Grand Prix, but that wasn't the scariest moment of his career.
2018 was a tough year for both Haas and Grosjean. The car was decent, but both drivers generally plunged the car into the nearest walls. Sadly Grosjean was the worst of the two and only ended the year with 37 points.
2019 was a dismal year for Grosjean. It was becoming apparent he was passing his peak, and a terrible car meant he was usually near the back of the pack. He scored just 8 points.
Thanks to the Ferrari problem with the engine, 2020 was the year from hell for Grosjean. Two points were all he could salvage in the bits of carbon fiber he was given to drive. He did have a spirited race in Mugello though, and it was probably the best last place anyone could hope for! He had ironed out his mistakes of previous years, and all was running well. At least until…
On lap 1 of the Bahrain Grand Prix, he had one of the worst racing crashes of the 21st century. Thankfully he was reasonably ok and seems set to make a full recovery, but his Formula 1 career came to a firey and devastating end in the desert.