Grosjean targeting 2018 Le Mans 24 Hours drive

Haas driver Romain Grosjean has revealed he is hoping to join fellow Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso on the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans grid. 

Alonso will contest his debut Le Mans outing as part of his World Endurance Championship deal with LMP1 squad Toyota, alongside his F1 commitments with McLaren during the 21-race 2018 calendar. 

This year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans takes place on June 16-17, falling directly in-between the Canadian and French Grands Prix, meaning there is no clash for F1 drives looking to race in the prestigious endurance event.

Grosjean’s Haas teammate Kevin Magnussen recently revealed he missed out on a drive with winning Rolex 24 at Daytona outfit Action Express Racing in January, but has vowed to secure a place on the grid for the 2019 race.

When asked if racing in another category appeals to him, Grosjean told RACER: "Yes, Le Mans 24 Hours is one that I'm looking at.

"If there's a great opportunity I may just jump in [this year]. It would be five weekends in a row or something like that, but I've got to train for a triathlon first. I'm trying to do a first triathlon this year, so I have a deal with my wife who says if I go and do another race I have to drop that one! I'd pick Le Mans.

"I haven't even asked the team. If there's an opportunity I will ask the team for sure and we'll see what we can do. If they don't want me to race, fine, I can fully understand. There are already a lot of races.”

Grosjean also reiterated his desire to participate in NASCAR at some stage in the future. 

"I would love to try NASCAR but it's difficult because of the skill and I need to test the car – I can't go to a race and think, 'Oh, I'll be all right, it's NASCAR.' It's a bit complicated. So we'll see what the future holds.”

When asked how likely he thinks a NASCAR outing for Stewart-Haas Racing - run by his F1 boss Gene Haas - would be, the Frenchman replied: “50:50. I think so. The first year was really a wish from both sides and it didn't really work. Then they swapped to Ford, which they really had to focus on. So it's not that easy. 

“I said I don't want to do any ovals because I don't feel comfortable, it's something very different from everything I know. So there's only two road races – Watkins Glen and Sonoma – and it just makes things difficult.

"It would probably have to be a request from the team and then I would be super happy to do it.”