SUMMARY
- Romain Grosjean is excited for Ayao Komatsu as he becomes the team principal for Haas
- Ayao Komatsu served as Grosjean's race engineer in Lotus and followed him to Haas
Romain Grosjean drove for the Haas F1 team for a long time. He was there when the team was first formed. He left only after the 2020 season. During his time with the team, he formed great relationships with the former and current team principal of the Haas F1 team.
While driving for the team in 2020, he suffered one of the most scariest accidents in F1 history. During the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, Grosjean’s Haas car hit the wall and burst into flames. No one has ever seen a Formula 1 car burst into flames like that in decades. However, he was able to survive and recover. He continues his racing career in the IndyCar series.
Romain Grosjean shows excitement for the new team principal of Haas
When the news broke that Guenther Steiner would be replaced by Ayao Komatsu as the Haas team principal, the F1 world was taken by shock. However, Romain Grosjean is more excited about the appointment of Komatsu as the new team principal. In a recent interview, he was asked to give his thoughts on the breaking news from Haas.
“I’m very happy for Komatsu. First of all, he’s a very good friend of mine.”
“His kids are the same age as my kids, so we’ve been very good friends, and I’m excited for him. It’s a huge challenge in front of him, so I’m excited for him.”
When asked whether he knew of any reason behind Steiner’s removal as Team Principal, Grosjean replied: “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know more details than you do, but I wish Guenther all the best in his next chapter. He’s definitely a man that’s got a lot of ideas and things to do.”
“But for me, the main thing is very happy for Ayao.”
Ayao Komatsu comments on his appointment as Team Principal of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team.#HaasF1 pic.twitter.com/n7mRVI86GF
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) January 10, 2024
Ayao Komatsu initially served as a race engineer for Grosjean when he was racing for the Lotus F1 team. After the French driver joined Haas, Komatsu followed him and continued to be the race engineer for the driver. However, soon after, Haas decided to promote Ayao to the trackside engineering director for the team. He worked closely with Guenther giving his input on the team’s operations.
With his appointment, Haas will be looking to focus on developing their car for better performance. After almost a decade of racing, the team continues to finish in the last few places on the WCC. Komatsu will be looking to change that with his engineering aspect of the team.
Why did Romain Grosjean leave the Haas F1 team?
Romain had been with Haas since its entry into F1. He played a very important role in the development of the car and the team as a whole. However, in 2018 and 2019, he was overconfident with the car and started to lose control a lot during the sessions. This not only cost the team in points but also in money and other resources.
Romain Grosjean confirms that the promise of a test with Mercedes still stands but that finding the right time to do it is difficult.
“We haven’t found the time yet, it’s my fault. It’s not simple. I’m heading for 30 race weekends next year. You complain that there are 24 in… pic.twitter.com/Bu90n9whZ8
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) January 13, 2024
The team still was not ready to let go of Grosjean, so they retained him for 1 more year. However, before the 2020 season came to an end, the team announced that they would not be retaining the French driver for the 2021 season. The reason for this still remains unknown, but it can be assumed that he was not able to bring out the potential of the car. There is no doubt that he would have remained with the team if he had scored points on a consistent basis.
However, Grosjean was 34 years old in 2020. Given that he was not very successful in F1, he should be happy to have driven for so many years. He will continue to have a legacy in the sport. His F1 car that went up in flames during the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix was showcased in the F1 exhibition in Madrid. We can expect it to be showcased in the F1 exhibition in Vienna as well.