At the end of a chaotic and interrupted race by neutralizations on the brand new urban circuit of the Markham Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean (Coyne) secured a brilliant second place.
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The “Phoenix” once again made his mark across the Atlantic by achieving his first podium since his big return to IndyCar at the beginning of the year.
Only the devastating attack from his former F1 rival, Marcus Ericsson (Andretti), deprived the Franco-Swiss driver of a historic victory in the last five laps. This is Grosjean’s seventh second place in four IndyCar seasons, as he is still chasing his first win.
The almost perfect heist
Starting mid-grid after tricky qualifying, the Geneva native delivered a recital of driving and opportunism. Taking advantage of a yellow flag ideally placed in the first third of the race following the collision between Sting Ray Robb (Juncos) and Marcus Armstrong (MSR), Grosjean found himself catapulted to the lead at the wheel of a car with formidable efficiency between the walls.
For several dozen laps, he resisted the suffocating pressure from Álex Palou (Ganassi), championship leader, before the Spaniard made a rare mistake. But the threat ultimately came from behind: equipped with much fresher soft tires thanks to a shortened last stint, Ericsson surged like a cannonball to snatch first place just five laps from the checkered flag.
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“It was good. I fought until the end, but the strategy of the 28 worked well, acknowledged Romain. Afterwards, it feels good to find the rhythm since yesterday we got a bit caught out in qualifying.”
Revenge in Washington?
“Honda did an incredible job with us. They were very efficient and gave us exactly the right amount of fuel needed to cross the finish line with an empty tank, he said. There was not much to do to defend. It just wasn’t for today… I had no fuel left, no tires, nothing. I gave it my all.”
“I cried a little. I won’t lie, he concluded. It’s been a long time (since my last win). It sucks… Today, when I managed to pull away from Palou, I thought it was going well. I’m very happy with my team and my performance. It gives me hope for next week.”
The next one is already this Sunday in the streets of Washington for a first-ever event in the American capital on the occasion of the USA’s 250th anniversary. Will he do as well as the Marquis de La Fayette, valiant fighter for American independence and nicknamed “the hero of two worlds”? That’s all we wish for him!
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