Romain Grosjean is an emerging face in Formula One, the pinnacle of motorsport. A test driver for the Renault F1 team, the 22-year-old is also the winner of the inaugural GP2 Asia series and talks to Nitin Nair about his need for speed.
Born to race
I was 14 years old when I had my first taste of racing; late by any standard (Fernando Alonso was three and Lewis Hamilton was six years old when they took their baby steps in the world of racing).
But after my first lap in a go-kart, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life in the coming years - I just had to race. There's nothing else I want to do.
First flush
I hold dual citizenships of France and Switzerland. My first competitive season in motorsport happened while I was still in Switzerland with the Formula Renault 1.6 Switzerland in 2003.
But then, I had to move up the ladder, so I returned to France to race in the French Formula Renault championship event.
The Hamilton way
I made my F3 debut with the Signature Plus team at the Macau street circuit Guia and finished ninth after qualifying 19th in 2005. After spending another year with Signature, in 2007 I moved to F3 Euroseries champions ASM.
I went on to win the championship, just like Lewis Hamilton and Paul di Resta had done with the same team in the previous two seasons.
The edge of Formula One
In 2006, I was chosen to be a part of the Renault Driver Development Programme and now I am a test driver for the French car-maker's F1 team.
This is the same programme that launched the F1 careers of Heikki Kovalanein and Nelson Piquet's. So in a manner of speaking, I consider myself in a good position to break into F1 racing, provided I do well in the GP2 series this year.
Hamilton and Nico Rosberg and Timo Glock moved from GP2 to F1, so that's encouraging. Formula One
is the ultimate level in motorsport, so you have to be a thorough professional to fit in.
I already have my own personal trainer, press officer and someone who manages my sponsorship deals as part of the development programme.
What's the trade off?
I don't have time for my friends and can't remember living a regular 22-year-old's life. Back in Switzerland, I work half-days in a bank selling shares and bonds.
NAME: Romain Grosjean
AGE: 22
NATIONALITY: French/Swiss
CLAIM TO FAME: F1 test driver, GP2 Asia champion
LIVES IN: Geneva, Switzerland
WEBSITE: romaingrosjean.com
