Romain Grosjean will use a “very different” set-up on his Haas this weekend following experiments conducted by the team in its new simulator.
Haas have been plagued with difficulties getting their VF-19 to keep its tyres in the correct temperature operating window. Since the summer break they have reverted to the car’s original aerodynamic specification from the start of the season.Now Grosjean will test a different set-up direction this weekend. “The start set-up that I am having on my car comes from the simulator,” he said. “It’s very different from the way we normally set up the car. We’re going to try to see if it actually helps or not.”
He praised the work done by the team’s simulator drivers Louis Deletraz and Pietro Fittipaldi in developing the simulator during the course of 2019. Fittipaldi is working in the simulator this weekend.
“Louis and Pietro have done a really good job in the simulator,” said Grosjean. “It’s a very frustrating job and can be very painful. You finish the day your brain is pretty tired – not to say a bad word! So they have really done a good job. The last time I jumped in it was a very good step forwards.”
Grosjean admitted he is not a fan of simulators. “I think this weekend it’s important that we try it and we use everything we can use in this modern world.
“If you ask me personally if I think is the right thing, I don’t think so. But if it’s the thing to move forward and to do better, yes, it is. So we have to use it. I’m sure Pietro will do as good as he can and [see] if we can get anything from it.”
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Jere (@jerejj)
29th November 2019, 7:51
I’d happily volunteer to do the simulator-work on behalf of him if he doesn’t really like to do it.
Stephen Crowsen (@drycrust)
29th November 2019, 8:54
I’d happily volunteer too, but my physique (and I suspect this applies to most F1 fans) isn’t anywhere near capable of sustaining the beating and battering necessary to do the job well.