Romain Grosjean has developed a knack of fast starts to the season during his short time in the IndyCar Series. Four of his five runner-up results have come before June, after all. The Swiss-born Frenchman is simmering any early expectations of winning with his new team, Juncos Hollinger Racing, but believes all the ingredients are there to progress and craft strong results.
Ex-Formula 1 veteran Grosjean made the switch over to JHR during the off season following a two-year stint with Andretti Autosport. Since becoming a full-time squad in the IndyCar Series in 2022, JHR has expanded from one to two cars, and steadily improved from breaking into the top 10 to scoring a brace of top-fives last year with Callum Ilott, who Grosjean has replaced in the Chevrolet-powered team’s #77 car for 2024.
It also doesn’t hurt that during the off-season, JHR was able add some papaya to its diet after forming a strategic alliance with Arrow McLaren. This concept has steadily become a trend in the series, with Meyer Shank Racing establishing a technical tie-up with Andretti Global, and AJ Foyt Racing following a similar relationship with Team Penske.
Even though everything appears to be trending in the right direction, Grosjean remains hesitant to declare the top step of the podium as an option when the season begins this weekend on the streets of St Petersburg.
“Well, I think it may be early to speak about wins,” says the 37-year-old. “For sure we’re going to try to do everything we can, but we also have to be realistic that we are up and coming.
“The team has been doing really good for the past few years, but it’s still a three-year-old team. So, a lot to do, but I think everyone is very motivated and very aware of what we can achieve and what we cannot achieve. That’s good.
“We’re definitely going to try to be in the top 10 at first and then see if we can do top five and even more. But step by step, we know where we are, and we know where we want to go.”
Grosjean, who has three IndyCar poles to his credit, also acknowledges that one of the hurdles he needs to overcome is finishing at the Indianapolis 500 – he has crashed out early in both his appearances. “At least to try to see the chequered flag would be a good start,” he reckons.
JHR is Grosjean’s third team in a four-year span in IndyCar since he broke onto the scene with Dale Coyne Racing for a partial campaign in 2021.
"I'm excited to see what we can do together. I’m realistic of where we are and what we need to do" Romain Grosjean
“Obviously, it’s always a challenge,” he admits. “There’s always things we need to adapt. But as I say, everyone is super-open-minded. I’m excited to see what we can do together. I’m realistic of where we are and what we need to do. But it’s IndyCar, and everything can happen on track. We’ll make sure that we seize every opportunity that we can.”
One of the biggest hurdles is the looming mid-season switch to the hybrid power unit coming some time after the Indy 500. To date only four teams – Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Penske – have been testing it.
JHR is among the rest of the teams tentatively scheduled to get their first run with the hybrid in late March at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Needless to say, Grosjean is among those not bothered to see it delayed.
“For us, it was tricky,” he says. “It was an advantage for some that was pretty significant, and when we were doing the drivers’ meeting early in December, the guys were asking a question about the hybrid, and I had no idea what they were talking about.
“Definitely kind of happy that it’s been postponed. It’s also going to allow us to start with a known concept on the car and move from there and see when the hybrid comes in, and hopefully by then we do have a lot more knowledge on it.”
Reflecting on his time with Andretti, which admittedly fell short of aspirations for victories or contending for the title, Grosjean is still able to take the positives from the experience.
“Well, I think we tried, and we had a lot of belief that we could fight for the championship, and we did not achieve that,” he says. “I had an amazing time with some great characters over the last two years, made a lot of good friends.
“But right now, I’m more interested in focusing on 2024 and seeing what we can do with Juncos Hollinger Racing than moaning about the past. A lot of good times, a lot of good positions, podiums. It just didn’t play out our way. But the next chapter is the important one.”
