Haas F1 Team driver Romain Grosjean is looking for a strong performance at this weekend’s 2017 Brazilian Grand Prix, and is hoping they will have similar pace to what they experienced in Mexico last time out.
Despite the Frenchman finishing the race in Mexico two laps down having sustained damage early on, it was clear at the start, and from team-mate Kevin Magnussen’s performance, that Haas had the pace to fight for a strong result.
“Well, we struggled in qualifying with both cars. We didn’t really have any pace. In the race, the pace was better but, unfortunately, my car was badly damaged following the contact with Fernando Alonso.
“I’m hoping that Brazil will be a little less challenging [than Mexico]. Hopefully, we’ll get better performance, which was the case last year.”
Haas are currently fighting it out for sixth place in the constructor’s standings with the Renault Sport Formula 1 Team, who are one point ahead in seventh, and Scuderia Toro Rosso, who are a further six points adrift in sixth spot.
With things so close, the American squad have every chance of moving ahead of both outfits if they can perform at the top of their game in the remaining races, but Grosjean feels Toro Rosso are the team they have a real chance of beating, due to the inexperience of their drivers.
“I think out of those teams, Renault is the faster one. They’ve got a really good car through to the end of the season. They’ve had a bit more of a difficult time in the races, which has allowed us to close the gap and keep them in sight.
“Toro Rosso is the one we can try to go for. They’re not performing better than we are, and they’ve got less experience amongst their drivers, so that should help us. We’re going to do everything we can to get those positions because it’s very important for the team.“
Grosjean is a big fan of the Brazilian Grand Prix, due to its history, the fans and of course Ayrton Senna. One of his fondest memories is of the Brazilian’s 1991 victory at Interlagos, when he could barely stand on the podium.
“Brazil is always special because of Ayrton Senna. He was one of the biggest names in Formula 1. Interlagos is a special place. There’s so much history there. On race day, you’ve got so much support from the fans.
“I remember Ayrton winning there in 1991 when he couldn’t hold the trophy in the air because he was so tired and had the pain in his arms from driving.”
