By Joey Barnes | motorsport.com
Romain Grosjean is simmering any early expectations of winning with Juncos Hollinger Racing (JHR) but believes all the ingredients are there to progress and craft strong results.
The Swiss-born Frenchman moved over to JHR during the offseason following a two-year stint with Andretti Global.
Since becoming a full-time outfit in the IndyCar Series in 2022, JHR have expanded from one to two cars and steadily improved from breaking into the top 10 to scoring multiple top fives; both were fifth-place results (St. Petersburg, Laguna Seca) which happened last year courtesy of Callum Ilott whom Grojsjean has since replaced in the team’s No. 77 Chevrolet for 2024.
Even though everything appears to be trending the right direction, Grosjean remains hesitant to declare the top step of the podium as an option when the season begins on the Streets of St. Petersburg on March 10.
“Well, I think it may be early to speak about wins,” said Grosjean, 37.
“For sure we're going to try to do everything we can, but we also have to be realistic that we are up and coming. The team has been doing really good for the last few years, but it's still a three-year-old team.
“So, a lot to do, but I think everyone is very motivated and very aware of what we can achieve and what we cannot achieve. That's good.”
And Grosjean also acknowledged one of the hurdles he personally needs to overcome is finishing at the Indianapolis 500, having finished 30th or worse after crashing out early in both appearances.
“At least try to see the checkered flag would be a good start,” he said.
Grosjean then provided more clarity on the results target for the upcoming season.
“Well, we're definitely going to try to be in the top 10 at first and then see if we can do top 5 and even more,” he said.
“But step by step, we know where we are and we know where we want to go.”
In joining JHR, it now becomes Grosjean’s third team to drive for over a four-year span since debuting with Dale Coyne Racing for a partial campaign in 2021. However, even with that lack of continuity, he comes in having scored five runner-up finishes among his six total podiums, along with three poles.
“Obviously, it's always a challenge,” Grosjean said.
“It's always positive. There's always things we need to adapt. But as I say, everyone is super open minded.
“I'm excited to see what we can do together. I'm realistic of where we are and what we need to do. But it's IndyCar, and everything can happen on track.
“We'll make sure that we seize every opportunity that we can.”
When reflecting back on his time with Andretti, which admittedly fell short of aspirations for victories or contending for the title, Grosjean was still able to take the positives from the experience.
However, the current focus is forward and on the task at hand.
“Well, I think we tried, and we had a lot of belief that we could fight for the championship, and we did not achieve that,” Grosjean said.
“I had an amazing time with some great characters over the last two years, made a lot of good friends.
“But right now, I'm more interested in focusing on 2024 and seeing what we can do with Juncos Hollinger Racing than moaning about the past.
“As I said, a lot of good friends up there, a lot of good times, a lot of good positions, podiums. It just didn't play out our way.
“But the next chapter is the important one.”