Grosjean, who raced for Haas from his first F1 season in 2016 until 2020, and was a Komatsu engineer on the team, believes his former colleague and old friend deserves all the plaudits he has been receiving.
“I’m very proud of Ayao and what he’s been doing with Haas, taking the team to a much better level, just making the most of it and working the way he does,” Grosjean, a current IndyCar and endurance racer, told F1. com.
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“I was lucky to find out before the official announcement. [that Komatsu would become Haas’s team boss]; I received a text message from Ayao. I told him I was very proud of him, very proud of everything he had done and very happy for him.
“Of course, I didn’t know how it was going to turn out, but it’s fantastic. It almost makes me feel like I want to run for them again!”