Grosjean reveals only one driver contacted him after losing Haas F1 seat

Romain Grosjean says he only received a message from one driver on the 2020 Formula 1 grid following the announcement he wouldn’t be retained by Haas next year.

Haas confirmed last month it had opted for an all-new driver line-up in 2021, with Grosjean and team-mate Kevin Magnussen not being offered a new contract by the American outfit.

Grosjean looks set to walk away from F1 11 years on from making his debut for Renault in 2009, with speculation linking him with a move to Formula E or WEC.

Having driven for Haas since its debut in 2016, the Frenchman is unlikely to fill one of the remaining seats on next year’s grid.

Speaking ahead of this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix, Grosjean revealed Williams driver George Russell contacted him via WhatsApp about the news.

Asked if it was important to him that drivers show empathy in those situations, Grosjean said: “I’ve had a good relationship with George. When the announcement was made that I wasn’t going to be with the team next season, he was the first and only one to send me a WhatsApp message.

“That really shows that he’s a great guy.”

Grosjean returned the favour after the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, where Russell lost the chance to score his maiden points when he crashed behind the safety car.

Two years prior Grosjean suffered a similar incident in Baku in 2018 whilst running in the points, sympathising the pain Russell went through, but backed the Briton to bounce back.

“I know how painful it is to crash under a safety car period – especially when it’s going to be your first point of the season,” he said. “I believe it was the same for me at Baku in 2018.

“In the lower part of the field, you really need to work the tires a lot. I’ve said it many times, if I was doing Baku again, I’d probably do the same thing as I did three seasons ago.

“George didn’t do anything crazy, but he just lost the car. It was a tough day for him, but he’ll have plenty more (good days) to come.”

Grosjean took to social media to console Russell for his mistake: “Man, I know the feeling. Will take some time to forget it, but what you do is mega. Keep pushing.”