Grosjean open to Lotus return in the future - MotorSportsTalk

He may have announced on Tuesday that he will be leaving the team, but Romain Grosjean has said that he is open to returning to Lotus in the future should the opportunity arise.

Grosjean has spent the entirety of his Formula 1 career in association with the Enstone-based operations, dating back to when it functioned as a Renault works team until the end of the 2010 season.

Renault is set to take over its old base once again when it pushes through its deal to buy Lotus for the 2016 season, but Grosjean will not remain, having been unveiled as the first driver for the new Haas F1 Team.

The Frenchman admitted earlier this week that he was keen to remain a part of the new Renault project, and would have stayed had the deal not taken so long to be finalized.

Grosjean admitted that leaving Lotus would be hard given his long-standing relationship with the team, but he left the door open to a possible return in the future.

“Part of my heart will absolutely always be with Enstone where I’ve grown and experienced so much over the years,” Grosjean said. “I can remember turning up in September 2005 at the front gate, not speaking English and being very shy. Some of the people I met that day are still there.

“I’m turning a new leaf in my book but it doesn’t mean that it’s the end of the book so why not come back to Enstone one day to become world champion with the team!

“Leaving Enstone at the end of the season won’t be easy… I promised everyone some beers in December when I come to say goodbye to the factory. Until then we’ve got five races left yet this season and I’m absolutely determined to end my time with the greatest high possible.”

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”