RoGro to go go?

RasputinLives

No passing through my dirty air please
Contributor
Well as a fan of Romain Grosjean I write this article with a heavy heart but it seems his contract has not been renewed as of yet and as Enstone has already sorted out Kimi's it means that they are probably having a think about it which means there is a possibility that Romain won't be back to improve his PR next year.

If it does happen then I think its a crying shame. Yes he's had his bad press and had his accidents but he's also shown he has a great turn of speed and before he became this driver who, in DC's words, is driving scared when he stayed out of early accidents showed he really could compete with the front runners. Its true Bahrain and Canada feel a long time ago but his performances shouldn't be forgotten. Personally I think if Piquet Jr and Petrov earned themselves a second year at Enstone then Grosjean should be given on too.

However there is a possibility that he will be out the door so who is on the cards to pick the seat up?

Esteban Gutiérrez - Drives for Enstone in GP2 and had a half decent season but with Sauber suddenly saying Kobi might stay it suddenly occured to me that maybe this was the case because their Mexican youngster was off somewhere else - otherwise surely Telemex would insist on a Mexican driver? But if Gutteriez was off to Enstone it would make sense that Kobi was back in again. Would he do well at Enstone? well its anyones guess, he'd probably do alright but I'd say Grosjean was a safer bet then he was so it would be an odd move. Unless of course having an alternative Mexcian driver might attract a certain very rich man into giving them some backing?

Jérôme d'Ambrosio - Has been the test driver all season and has clocked massive amounts of simulator time and even some testing the real thing. He also is in the Eric Boullier stable of drivers which is handy when you're going for an Enstone drive. However he didn't exactly blow the bloody doors off when he got his chance at Monza. True coming inot a car mid-season for one race is dififcult especially at Monza when you have no KERS but did he really show enough to be given the race seat?

Jaime Alguersuari - The man who would be God has been tweeting like crazy this season about his return to F1 in 2013 but any concrete plans are yet to surface. At one point he was meant to be the next big thing and certainly has a good junior record with the general thinking being that maybe he was brought into F1 just a little too young. I certainly think he showed us enough at Toro Rosso for us to say he'd bring the Enstone car home for some decent results but wouold he do it consistantly? He did tend to be up and down and as the only reason for ditiching Grosjean would be his lack of it would Alguersauri be too big a risk? On top of which, whilst not getting the bad press Grosjean has, Jamie did have a rep as a wheel banger and pulled some questionable moves on his day. Is he just to simmilar to what he's meant to be replacing?

Kamui Kobayashi - Only 8 points behind his much raved about team-mate and most people consider he's had a poor year compared to his previous too. Has shown he is more than capable of following and maximising a strategy from day one and over his threee seasons has learnt the skill of knowing when to pick his battles. I think Kobi would be an ideal back up for Kimi but I have a feeling he doesn't have the backing to land the drive.

Heikki Kovalainen - Is the time right for Heiki to go back to Enstone? Has shown he can play the back up man at Mclaren and has had 3 more seasons to mature since then. Has a steady head and experience to stay out of trouble and would probably be a match for Grosjean speedwise. If they are looking for someone with all Grosjean's talents and less of his faults then I can think of no one better - The only draw back I can think of is that with 2 Finns in the team, Enstone may have to run a shark nose.

I know there are other contenders (although I think Adrian Sutil may have written himself out of this one) and in all honesty I'd like to see Grosjean stay but does anyone else have any thoughts?
 
A timely article.
I was just thinking today that of the top teams he is the only one left who hasn't been confirmed for 2013.

Personally I don't think F1 will miss him too much; he's too raw and impetuous and needs more time to mature and calm down.
Perhaps a season in one of the midfield teams would do him some good?
Failing that, a season away might work.

Either way I believe Renault Lotus need to partner Raikkonen with someone more reliable and consistent to consolidate their position.
 
Lotus need a rock steady good performer to partner Kimi preferably someone who knows how to set up a car. They aren't going to get that by taking on another unpredictable banzii rookie. Kobayashi or Kovalainen are both good choices, but if I was Eric Boullier I would be on the phone to Rubens Barichello who would jump at the chance.
 
Kobayashi to Lotus; I'd love that one. Think that'd make sense for Boullier; I think Kobayashi deserves a chance at the top. Think he could make it.

Alguersuari - interesting...! He and Buemi should be in F1 from their Bull Jr performances.

But surely Grosjean has to retain his seat with his win, RasputinLives, the consequences of that not happening... could we trust your predictions again?
 
Rubens! Now theres a name I didn't think to put in the hat - good call Greenlantern101

Thing is with Rubens is does he have the speed anymore? espeically after a year out. Lets remember for all his errors this year Grosjean has delievered 3 podiums and has been in Q3 15 out of 18 times. A steady hand is what they are after but it has to be someone who can produce the same sort of speed. I thinki 5 years ago Rubens would have been perfect. Not so sure now though.
 
Rubens has always been well above average. Not got the cutting edge of a world champion. But he is quick. I doupt he has lost any of that. After his forced year out he will be hungry for it.
 
Well I'm not sure Rubens had the speed before his year out but I guess that remains to be seen.

I guess I could have included Sebasitan Buemi but I kind of think he's Red Bull's very owm Pedro De La Rosa and will be with them for a long time in the background.

I guess I should have included James Caledo as an option as he is an Eric Boullier driver, and Enstone GP2 driver and is very highly rated by both. However as some of his driving in GP2 this year made Grosjean look like and advert for Road Safety I didn't think he was a realistic option.
 
Couldn't agree more on Calado.
I posted in the GP2 thread about just how shockingly bad he was at times.

I'm surprised he still has a licence...
 
Bruno Senna to Lotus he brings a few bob and he has driven for them before, that's my guess especially as Bruno doesn't seem to be to concerned about his future in F1...

You heard it hear first so bookmark this post....:)
 
He should stay. He's been reckless and downright stupid in some moments but he the raw speed, perhaps Vettel/Hamilton speed seeing as he looks to be generally faster than Kimi. However he really needs to cut the crap out, I'd give him another season but if he bollocks that up then I'd ditch him. Mustn't forget he's had great moments too, his 2nd at Canada was fanastic.

Harder to make a slow and reliable driver fast than it is to make a fast and reckless driver reliable etc.
 
You do have to wonder if RoGro can overcome the rep he got this year. He has been so quick, I would give him another year.

If not, then no one deserves it more than Kovaleinen in more view. Three years at Caterham should be rewarded.
 
The only reason he still has a drive is because of Boullier who I'd imagine gets a pay cut. Conflict of interest if there ever was one. I also think Boullier is one of the reasons he seems to be out of control at times. Too much molly coddling and not enough stern talk.
 
Oh I must've missed that...

I'd like to see him keep his seat though, if Maldonado can turn from a liability into a pretty steady racer then surely so can Grosjean?
 
The trouble is with Grosjean, it's not just this year's record is it?
His first stint in F1 didn't go much better, and even in GP2 last year he seemed to me to be almost as bad as Calado has been this season.

I'd probably go for Gutierrez.
 
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