Grosjean Relieved as IndyCar Hybrid Postponed: ‘Tricky’ Tech Delayed Beyond Indy 500
French former F1 deiver and present IndyCar racer Roman Grosjean is relieved that IndyCar has postponed the implementation of its electrical hybrid until after the Indianapolis 500, so nobody gains an unfair advantage.
Testing of the new supercapacitor system has been carried out by teams like Chevrolet and Honda –team Penske and Arrow McLaren, and Andretti Global and Chip Ganassi Racing respectively.
The hybrid engine was originally planned to be ready by the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on 10 March.
Although after many miles of testing done throughout many IndyCar tracks, the plan is now fully postponed until December 2024 after the Indianapolis 500 race.
The former F1 driver and current Indycar driver Roman Grosjean said he feels relieved hearing this news as
he had no idea about hybrid and will get more amount of time to have a better knowledge about hybrid engines.
While giving an interview Grosjean said “Definitely kind of happy that it’s been postponed. It’s also going to allow us to start with a known concept on the car and move from there and see when the hybrid comes in, and hopefully by then we do have a lot more knowledge on it.”
On the other hand, drivers who have logged test miles with the hybrid system report that it is functioning flawlessly and they fully trust it when it is implemented later this year.
“I’ve done quite a few test days where you just run all day, two days, and no problems,” stated Will Power of Penske. Not a single issue.
He went on to say, “I think it’s a bit of everything, a little bit of supply issue and so on,” when asked why the postponement was necessary. I believe IndyCar made the proper choice there because they want it to be completely unbreakable when it is introduced.
“The testing went well. The system has performed admirably.