Grosjean “on a three race rolling contract”
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After watching BBC highlights, according to Eddie Jordan, Grosjean is apparently employed on a 3 race rolling contract, this being the 6th race means he is up for renewal, and after his dire perfomance in monaco could this be the end for grosjean? All the crashes are not good for attracting sponsors, costing the team time and money and dangerous to other drivers. Admittingly this year he has been better than last year in terms of crashes, but he has had no speed compared to raikonnen.
Finally with it likely (possible) that Raikonnen will move on at the end of the season, and is it not time to get valsecchi in for grosjean? surely he cant be worse than grosjean, and due to grosjeans fast but crash alot or slow in the midfield but not crash ability its hard to see him being retained past the end of the season. so if Lotus put Valsecchi in the car now, he can get 2/3 of a season experience and (probably) give lotus a better option for next year to have some continuity in terms of drivers.
Yeah it’s starting to look more and more likely that Grosjean is going to be dumped mid-season. If it happens though, the replacement is IMO going to come outside the team, I don’t see them hiring another rookie-level driver. Kovalainen maybe? He has driven a 2013 car and has history with the Enstone team.
BTW, it’s Räikkönen, not Raikonnen. If you can’t spell his last name why don’t you just use Kimi.
I have to say, at one point, Grosjean really had me hyped up. I truly though around mid-way 2012 that he’d be a future champion. Then that massive shunt in Spa shattered his confidence, and he’s only gotten worse since. Even his speed seems to be gone, at least last year he was able to match Raikkonen on raw pace alone, now that too seems to be gone. In every race so far this year barring Malaysia and Bahrain, he’s been dreadfully slow. On top of that, he crashed four times in one weekend. When was the last time that happened?
Yeah, to end the rant and come to my conclusion, he’s getting sacked, maybe even before the summer break. I’d be surprised if Lotus keep him until the end of the year, let alone for 2014.
Wow, that’s really interesting about RG’s contract. In which case, I can see how the pressure must have really been on this weekend. But who would Lotus sign to drive in his place? It’s incredibly hard to jump into these things and go fast right away. I’d love to see Valsecchi get his chance, but it makes you wonder who would be a better option for a mid-season replacement if he indeed gets dropped.
I really want either Robin Frijns or Robert Wickens to get a chance in F1. Unfortunately, Wickens’ chances are ruined by him being stuck in DTM, and Frijns is bound with Sauber.
I think Lotus should give Romain another three-race contract, simply because putting Valsecchi in the car for Canada would be risky. He has never driven there, and it is a dangerous track. So Grosjean should continue with Lotus for three more races. If his pace doesn’t improve, and he has a big crash, he should be given the sack.
I think they should give Grosjean until the end of the season and then review his situation. If he continues to cause accidents then I think they will release him. I agree with Kingshark in that I would love for them to try out a rookie like Frijns but I can’t see that happening as I would imagine they would prefer a safer pair of hands. Hulkenburg would be my choice to replace Grosjean.
I’d give Grosjean until the summer break to up his game otherwise time’s up, in which case – draft Valsecchi in for experience, or perhaps Kovalainen if they want a proven hand to pick up valuable constructors’ points…
Thinking outside the square, what if – presuming Kimi is RBR bound next season, Ricciardo replaces Grosjean at Lotus prior to Spa, and da Costa takes his place at Toro Rosso?
Some great logic in this thread but this is f1 and lotus prime sponsor want a frenchman in the car or he wouldnt be back this season,he will drive for the rest of the year and it wouldnt surprise me to see bianchi if he doesnt replace massa at ferrari in his seat next season
Another example of why the current lack of mileage for younger drivers is a bad thing. If they drafted in Valsecchi now, he’d almost definitely struggle.
We need more young drivers tests, in my view.
This is the stupidest decision Lotus could make if they dump Grosjean mid-season.
Why? How could any other driver do worse job than Grosjean is doing? With Grosjean they will most likely end up 4th in the championship and Kimi’s championship points alone will ensure they can’t drop to 5th place. So there isn’t really any risk in dumping Grosjean.
Grosjean has already had about two full seasons in Formula One and there has been little progress (in fact, I think he has regressed this season), so it’s not like keeping him would be a good investment either. I believe the only think that has been protecting Grosjean for so long is the fact that his manager is Boullier, but that can’t save him forever.
I think that if Grosjean is replaced, it will be someone outside the team. Valsecchi would probably struggle, even if getting him experience now could pay off next season. Kovalainen, Glock and Kobayashi seem good choices, even though I don’t have any information on whether Lotus has contacted any of them or if they’d be free to join Lotus.
(in fact, I think he has regressed this season)
He may have regressed, but there was clearly an issue with the car at the start of the season. He got on the podium the moment Lotus changed his chassis. Barcelona doesn’t really count, since he had a mechanical failure. And while he had his moments of idiocy in Monaco – for which he will pay the price in Canada – he also demonstrated plenty of pace throughout qualifying.
So I’d say it’s still 50/50 on what kind of future he has in Formula 1. It’s a shame that he’s as inconsistent as he is fast, because he’s very, very quick. I think any potential replacement will hinge on whoever is the next in line for the seat. I can’t see Lotus putting Davide Valsecchi in the car, but if Stefano Coletti or Felipe Nasr became available, then Grosjean’s days might be numbered.
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