Haas F1 Team driver Romain Grosjean was pleased the team were able to take their second double points score of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix, but feels he could have fought with the Sahara Force India F1 Team driver’s, had he not been stuck behind team-mate Kevin Magnussen for the majority of the race.
The Frenchman says that he had much more pace in the car than he was able to show, and despite believing he could have done more, he still felt it was a positive to be performing so well for once.
“It’s our second double-score for the team, so that’s pretty awesome. I’m very happy for the team.
“I knew yesterday I had some great pace in the car. I couldn’t show it as I was always behind Kevin all race long, but I had much more pace in the car.
“I wish I could’ve been ahead. I think I could’ve fought with the Force India’s, so that’s pretty good.”
Grosjean says that Improvements that allowed the tyres to work more optimally, definitely helped them to find some extra speed on race day, and feels that is something they need to keep working on to maximise their potential.
“We figured out how to get the tyres to work a little bit better. It’s clearly the key. When they work, it’s so much faster. When they don’t, you just struggle.
“We still need to improve that, but I felt much better in the car. I was happy with the brakes, everything went well.”
After such a positive weekend for Haas in Japan, the Frenchman is now looking forward to heading to the team’s home race in Austin, Texas, in two week’s time, where he hopes they can provide the fans with a strong showing.
“It’s going to be great heading to Austin now for our second race there. It’s such a cool track. I’m looking forward to seeing all the fans welcoming us and, hopefully, getting some more points there, as well.”
