Grosjean emerges as strong contender for Haas F1 drive
Romain Grosjean has emerged as a strong late-contender for the Haas team in 2016, amid ongoing uncertainty about the future of his current Lotus outfit.
Romain Grosjean, Lotus F1 Team
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The Frenchman put in one of the best performances of his career at the Belgian Grand Prix a fortnight ago to deliver a surprise podium finish, and remind people of his speed.
And although he has previously made it clear that he would love to be a part of the new Renault team if it takes over Lotus, the ongoing delays in finalising that deal have left him pondering other options.
Motorsport.com undertands that with no guarantee the Renault takeover of Lotus will happen, Grosjean has been in negotiations with Haas about a switch there for 2016.
Haas has been clear from the start that it wants experienced drivers on board, and Grosjean's podium form and the fact that he is a current driver has left him as an obvious choice for the new American outfit.
Other drivers pushing for a chance at Haas are Kevin Magnussen, Jean-Eric Vergne and Esteban Gutierrez – although none of those have been racing this year.
Decision this month
Haas team principal Gunther Steiner told Motorsport.com at the Italian Grand Prix that his outfit would make a decision this month – having lost out on previous top contender Nico Hulkenberg.
"We are still aiming for September," Steiner told Motorsport.com. "Obviously it is a very important decision for us and we are not rushing into it, but we are still aiming for September.
"Everybody knows how the market looks like, with a lot of the dominoes having fallen by now with people staying put.
"So we are talking with all the people out there with experience and we just want to make the right decision."
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