Romain Grosjean is an example of consistency. The French driver will race in his sixth consecutive Formula One season starting this week, when the 2017 campaign begins at the Australian Grand Prix.
The Frenchman has 10 podiums in his career in the top category, and he is fourth in history with the most number of races finished in the top three without winning, but he has done it in teams that have been far from fighting for victories.
It will be his sixth season in total, as he made his debut in the Grand Circus in 2009, at the age of 23, as a Renault driver replacing the Brazilian Nelson Piquet Jr., and his best result was 13th place in Brazil, but he returned to the GP2 category, to be crowned in the 2011 campaign.
He returned to the F1 grid in 2012 with the Lotus team, where he showed his talent with a third place in Bahrain, and a second place in Canada, as well as a podium in Hungary, to finish in eighth place in the drivers' championship.
But in 2013 he increased his quota, with third places in Bahrain, Germany, Korea, Japan, and India, and a second place in the United States to add 132 points and be seventh; however, Lotus did not find consistency the following season and only scored eight points.
In 2015 he returned to the podium with a third place in Belgium, and despite being announced as the first driver in the history of the Haas team for the following season, he finished in the Top 10 in the last three races to say goodbye to the team.
The Frenchman took the responsibility of developing the car of the American team, and once again he delivered on the track. He finished sixth in Australia, in the debut with the team, and fifth two weeks later, to start the dream in the best way.
He finished the season with 29 points, to be 13th in the drivers' championship, and looking ahead to the new season, he explained to La Aficion that he hopes there will not be a drop in performance of the car, with the new rules that promise to increase speed, and although he keeps his feet on the ground, he hopes to improve the points harvest, and seek his eleventh podium in the top category.
- After a good first year, what do you expect from the Haas team for this season?
Obviously we want to do better than last year, we hope to be able to score points more regularly, I think with all the experience we have now, it should be a goal that we can achieve.
- Do you think it will be more difficult this year, due to the rule changes and a possible decrease in performance?
I think that's what a lot of people think, but we have more experience, and we are more prepared, so I hope not.
- What do you think of the rule changes for F1 in 2017?
I love the new rules, I like the new car, the way it looks. I like the fact that they are wider and faster, we hope they are also good for racing.
- Would another 29 points be a good figure?
They would be very good, but we want more than that.
- Do you think a podium this year is possible?
You should never say never, we will do whatever is possible to achieve it.
- How do you feel about your new teammate, Kevin Magnussen (replacing the Mexican Esteban Gutierrez)?
Kevin is a great person, he has a lot of experience, and he will be fast, so that will be very good for the team.