IndyCar newcomer Romain Grosjean says he is open to a long-term future in the category should he have a beneficial experience in his rookie season.
After his abrupt departure from Formula 1, Grosjean’s move to IndyCar will see him compete on the road and street courses in the No.51 Rick Ware-backed Dale Coyne-Honda.
Grosjean acknowledged the challenge of learning a new series whilst remaining apart from his wife and three children for a longer period of time, but is keeping his options open should he be tempted to stay beyond the 2021 campaign.
“If I enjoy my time in the U.S, I can do a great job, I feel like this is what I want to do, and it is what I can race well and do my job properly, in a nice way, I would definitely stay,” said the Frenchman.
“But at the minute it’s a challenge that I’m taking on a lot of aspects. It’s a new category, a lot of travel for me. My family is staying in Europe. Sometimes I’m going to be maybe a month without seeing them, which is quite hard when you’re a dad. But I’m ready to try it.
“As I say, if everything goes well, I really enjoy myself, I’ve got great opportunities in the future here, I’m more than happy to bring everyone over and to enjoy a few years here.”
Grosjean, who turns 35 next week, says age is unlikely to be a prohibitive barrier in getting accustomed to the series given the relative years of those elsewhere on the grid.
“I’m [nearly] 35 so I still have some time for racing. Seems that the [other] guys, Scott [Dixon] is 40, Will Power just turned 40, Sebastien [Bourdais] is 42, they still do really good and go racing. I still see that I’ve got some years left.
“As I say, if I enjoy myself here, what I came looking for, I may stay.”
Grosjean’s IndyCar career will get underway at the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park on April 18.
