Haas F1 Team driver Romain Grosjean will depart Bahrain to return home to Switzerland where he will receive on-going medical treatment on the burns he suffered on the back of his hands at the Bahrain Grand Prix – Sunday 29 November. As a result, Grosjean will not attend the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix next week with Haas F1 Team – the season finale of the 2020 FIA Formula 1 World Championship scheduled to have been the Frenchman’s final race with the American team.
Pietro Fittipaldi, currently subbing for Grosjean at the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit, will compete again for Haas F1 Team alongside teammate Kevin Magnussen in Abu Dhabi, 11-13 December.
“It is with great sadness that I will not be able to do my final race in Abu Dhabi and be with the team there,” said Romain Grosjean. “We’ve tried as much as we could with the doctor to recover and to repair my hand, but the risk of racing is too big for my recovery and my health. So, the decision was made that I’m not going to race. It’s one of the hardest decisions of my life, but it’s obviously one of the wisest. I will miss the team, but I will be supporting them as ever.”
“I’m naturally very sorry that Romain will miss what was going to be his final race with Haas F1 Team,” stated Guenther Steiner, team principal Haas F1 Team. “But we are all in agreement that he has to take the best course of action regarding his treatment and recovery from last Sunday’s incident. Romain has shown exceptional bravery and amazing spirit over the last few days – we know how badly he wanted to be able to return to the cockpit of the VF-20 in Abu Dhabi. And we all would have loved him to have been there too.”
Steiner continued, “Romain believed in our Formula 1 project at the very start, he committed to drive for us before we’d even built a car. There is no doubting the determination and sheer effort he has put into helping us to achieve what we have as a young team in Formula 1. We will forever be grateful for that belief and commitment. It is those qualities, his drive and ambition, that I’m sure will aid him on his recovery. On behalf of Gene Haas and myself, together with the whole Haas F1 Team operation, we wish Romain well and a return to full health.”