Romain Grosjean experienced an emotional return to a Formula One cockpit for the first time since his career-ending fireball crash in 2020.
The 39-year-old French driver reunited with the Haas team at Italy’s Mugello circuit for a proper send-off he missed after the Bahrain incident.
“They made me cry at the end of the day,“ Grosjean revealed.
He described keeping his visor down during his final lap as team members from Ferrari, Red Bull, Pirelli, and Haas gave him a standing ovation.
“That’s something I was expecting in Abu Dhabi 2020 but I think it was even better today,“ he added.
Grosjean missed the final two races of his last season following the fiery opening-lap crash at the Sakhir circuit.
The driver sustained burns to his hands while escaping the flame-engulfed car in a moment now etched into F1 legend.
Members of his original crew, including current team principal Ayao Komatsu, attended as he drove a 2023 car during a Pirelli tyre test.
“It was a wet day but as we say, a rainy wedding is a happy wedding. So it was a rainy day, a happy day. Fantastic,“ Grosjean said.
He admitted feeling rusty initially before his skills returned, even performing a standing start for the first time since the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix. – Reuters