Romain Grosjean facing another series exit with IndyCar career under threat

Romain Grosjean has revealed “budget” could cost him his Juncos Hollinger Racing ride as the IndyCar team needs either sponsors or pay drivers to go racing.

Grosjean said farewell to Formula 1 in 2020 after he was dropped by Haas, the Frenchman literally going out in a ball of flames when he crashed on the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Romain Grosjean’s IndyCar is in doubt

Making contact with the AlphaTauri of Daniil Kvyat, Grosjean’s VF-20 speared into the Armco barrier at high speed, the car splitting the car in half as fuel poured from it and ignited.

Grosjean climbed through the flames to safety, miraculously suffering nothing more than a few burns and ligament damage in his left thumb. The injuries meant his Formula 1 career was cut short as he missed the final two races of the championship.

The ex-Formula 1 driver wasn’t without a race seat for long as he found a home in America’s IndyCar series.

Racing for Dale Coyne Racing in his first season, a late-season podium at the Monterey Grand Prix saw him snapped up by Andretti, where he spent two years, before joining Juncos Hollinger Racing in the No. 77 Chevrolet.

It was, Grosjean says, his best season yet in IndyCar as he recorded six top-ten results, which is more than the team had managed in any other season.

But despite Juncos Hollinger Racing having an option on him for the 2025 IndyCar season, Grosjean doesn’t yet know where he stands given their financial troubles.

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“It’s all budget,” Grosjean told RACER. “So right now, I’ve got nothing lined up. It is what it is.

“I think last year was probably one of my best seasons, and I may end up not being in the grid next year, just because the marketing has been horrendous for IndyCar, the hybrid has brought the costs to a level that’s unbearable for teams, and that’s the way it is.

“I think we built something good that I would like to carry on, and they would like to carry on as well. But we need sponsors, so we are actively trying to find money for the car, and then once the car is funded, we can go racing.

“I’m actively trying hard to find partners for the team. I think of it as kind of my duty to do that and help them. That’s where we are.”

This isn’t the first time Juncos Hollinger Racing has run into trouble as the team sat out the 2020 season, blaming difficulties due to the Covid pandemic.

JHR’s situation could see Grosjean return to his first IndyCar team with Dale Coyne Racing the only other outfit with seats available for 2025.

“I’ve never stopped talking with Dale,” Grosjean said. “I really love him as a person. I always keep in touch, and I’m not a genius, but I think there’s only two teams left on the grid to have discourse.

“There’s a lot of work to be done there at Dale’s team – the last two seasons have been a bit rough. But if we cannot pull it off with Juncos, that will be an option as well. Get back at it and build it from where we were before, and hopefully do something good.”

Along with his IndyCar duties, Grosjean also contested several SportsCar races this year with Lamborghini Iron Lynx including the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

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