This was an opportunity Romain Grosjean wasn’t going to pass up. For the vast majority of his 38 years, he’d pondered this moment. Now he just had to convince Steve.
DirtFish owner Steve Rimmer smiled at the thought of giving the man who started 179 Formula 1 races, finished 10 of them on the podium and is now one of the biggest names in American racing, his moment in a rally car.
In fairness, Grosjean’s backstory was more than compelling enough to open the door to one of world rallying’s most famous cars. Steve granted him his wish and the Swiss-born Frenchman couldn’t stop smiling.
Last weekend’s Velocity Invitational event in California was dreamland for car enthusiasts. The IndyCar star was no exception.
DirtFish had a big presence at Velocity - typified by the awesome gathering of Group B cars
“With a history and a story like his, how could we say no to Romain?” said Steve.
Tell us, Romain.
“Rallying is actually my first love,” Grosjean explained to DirtFish. “When I was growing up my dad was the lawyer for the team running the Lancias. So, from the 037 to the S4, the Deltas, I’ve been following Lancia all my life.
“And, of course, when you follow the S4, you had [to follow] the Peugeot 205. I was very lucky to drive a Lancia some years ago and here I see the Peugeot and I’m like: ‘I’ve got to try it! I’m French it’s part of history…’
“My friend Benjamin [Pederson, fellow American racer] and I were talking about DirtFish and then we saw Steve and his cars and I got lucky: I got to drive the Peugeot. This was definitely the one for me, I mean, come on, Juha Kankkunen, Pikes Peak, America… it’s got to be driven.”
Not long later, he was climbing aboard the ex-Kankkunen car and running a finger across the fuses and switches, totally caught in the moment. Pushing the clutch to the floor, he sought first and went through the next couple of ratios, just to get a feel for the gearbox. Glancing up, he caught Steve’s eye and raised a thumb.
Steve grinned and nodded.
Grosjean had driven a Delta S4 before, but got his chance to try the 205 last weekend
Starter button depressed, the 205 T16 E2 fired instantly. The Sonoma circuit lay in wait.
Grosjean was, as you would expect, inch-perfect in his lines. The Peugeot responded beautifully, delivering the occasional squeak from the tires as it was loaded up and hustled through a couple of the slower corners.
Returning to DirtFish’s corner of the paddock, Grosjean stayed in the seat for a moment, just a moment, to consider what he’d just done.
“I felt like Kankkunen,” he beamed. “This guy was one of my heroes when I was young and to drive this car… what a blast.”
Thoughts gathered, he’s ready for a longer debrief.
“It’s insane how good that car is,” he said. “We can’t say it’s old because it’s the same age as me, but wow. The engine is awesome and it handles fantastic. The first thing that really surprised me is the weight: it’s so light you can just tell it’s got a short wheelbase, it wants to play. The gearing was probably a little bit too short for this circuit, I didn’t come lower than third and was in fifth most of the time – but this car was made for the dirt.
As expected, Grosjean took to the T16 like a duck to water
“Now, we cannot bring them on dirt, they’re too beautiful and too precious – but this was incredible. Like I said, rallying was my first love, I watched it as a kid. I think I should have been a rally driver.”
Reminded that it’s not too late for the switch, Steve knows just the place to learn the laws of sideways.
“I’ll definitely be coming up to DirtFish,” Grosjean smiles. “But for now, I’ll stick to the track, it’s probably safer!”
