Grosjean claims Hungarian GP is "not an easy race"

Romain Grosjean claims that despite the Hungarian Grand Prix being at a relatively low speed, it is not an easy race. This weekend, the Hungaroring hosts round eleven of the 2017 world championship. The track brings some nice memories for the Frenchman, who finished on the podium there in 2012.

"I’ve had some great races at the Hungaroring. I had my first pole position in GP2 there in 2008. I had some good races after that in GP2. I also qualified on the front row of the Hungarian Grand Prix back in 2012."

This weekend, the weather is set to soar high into the 30's, meaning the driver's endurance and concentration will surely be tested as much as their skills. Grosjean understands that the air can indeed get hot, contributing to the already difficult race.

"I’ve always had a good feeling in Hungary. I’ve always liked the track. It used to be very bumpy, but they resurfaced it last year. It’s a low-speed circuit. How the car handles is important. I’ve been lucky to have had cars that have performed well there over the years.

"It can get very hot in Budapest. It’s not an easy race, but on the other hand, there’s not many high-speed corners on the track, so it’s more about keeping your focus and concentration all through the race. Regardless, we’re always keeping fit to prepare ourselves."

Overtaking to be difficult

The track is also much more narrow than others on the calendar and with only one straight that is relatively short, overtaking is quite difficult around the circuit: "It’s very difficult to overtake at the Hungaroring," Grosjean continued. "To be fair, I made one of the best overtakes of my life there in 2013, outside of turn four, on Felipe Massa. I got a drive-through penalty for that one for having four wheels off the track.

"That didn’t matter to me as it was one of my most beautiful overtaking moves ever, because it came at a corner where nobody is expecting you to overtake. It was an outside overtake on a high-speed corner. The penalty, I thought, was questionable, but I just enjoyed the move. It was a key time in the race for me to be able to try and win. I really had to push hard and I just really enjoyed that overtaking manoeuvre."