Haas F1 confirms Grosjean to remain in hospital overnight

Haas F1 boss Guenther Steiner has confirmed Romain Grosjean will remain in hospital overnight as he recovers from his heavy crash on the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Grosjean crashed heavily after tangling with AlphaTauri’s Daniil Kvyat at Turn 3.

On impact with the barriers, Grosjean’s car ignited and it was torn in half in a horrifying crash.

The Frenchman managed to get out of the wreckage and was quickly transported via helicopter to the local hospital with minor burns and a suspected rib fracture.

Speaking about Grosjean’s condition, Steiner confirmed he didn’t suffer a rib fracture and burns on his hands were his main injuries following the crash.

“I just spoke with him, I just talked to him on the phone,” Steiner said. “He’s a clear state of mind. He’s good. He’s staying in the hospital overnight - they want to keep him there. He told me and not the doctor, he feels good. It seems that nothing is broken. He’s got his hands bandaged from the burns. He was very upbeat I would say, very happy.”

Steiner revealed the team had no idea Grosjean managed to escape from his Haas car until it was seen on the world feed.

“No, that was not enough time to do that,” Steiner added. “We saw the pictures and then immediately when they took him to the medical centre. They told us he’s there and his physio went there, and then we got informed from him so we got kept up to speed with that one.”

Steiner thanked the FIA's medical team - Dr Ian Roberts and medical car driver Alan van der Merwe - for the role they played in ensuring Grosjean escaped the wreckage safely.

“Absolutely, I needed to go and see those guys and thank them,” Steiner concluded. “It was emotional for me to be brave. I think Dr Ian Roberts would have even gone there even if we would have been in there [in the car] and Alan behind with the fire extinguisher, just doing the right thing.

“There was no time to make a plan, this just happened. These guys know what they’re doing and I was impressed by this. The marshals which were there did a great job, fair play to them.”

Shortly after this interview, Haas released the following statement: “Following medical evaluation by doctors at the Bahrain Defence Force (BDF) Hospital Haas F1 Team driver Romain Grosjean will remain in hospital overnight to be treated for burns sustained on the back of both hands after his opening lap incident at the Bahrain Grand Prix. All X-rays performed on Grosjean came back clear of fractures.”