Haas F1 driver Romain Grosjean has admitted some feeling personal responsibility for not overcoming the persistent braking issues that have blighted his time at the team.
It has been a story that has followed the Frenchman for almost a year, with the problems becoming more noticeable in the second half of last season and have seen the American outfit consistently struggle to find a lasting solution.
Tests have been done on materials produced by both Carbone Industrie and Brembo, who have supplied almost all the races, however, there is a growing sense that a problem with Haas’ configuration of the brake-by-wire system is the more likely cause.
In Baku, though most drivers have been down an escape road at least once, Grosjean has suffered more than most with the inconsistency of the brakes the main factor in his Q1 elimination in qualifying.
“The problem is that I don’t get the feeling and therefore I am not getting the best out of the car,” Grosjean explained.
“There’s a lot of things that could be better on the car but I am not saying that’s why we are out, I’m just saying that when things are wrong in that aspect and I don’t’ get the feedback that I want, I am struggling to find where I should put the car.
‘Today, I didn’t get the feeling. It’s as simple as that, I’m not searching for an excuse.”
Instead, the former Renault and Lotus driver, who is becoming known for his radio rants, revealed his own struggle to adapt his driving style around the problems is also angering him.
“If you look at the bigger picture you can find a lot of areas, tyres too hard, brakes not [working] well, set-up maybe not perfect and so on. When that’s the case I need to do a better job,” Romain said.
“It’s not set-up related it’s just that when things are not great, I am struggling to find the real limit. We made the right choice for qualifying, the set-up was going in the right direction but like I say, when the deceleration zone is not to my liking, things are not happening as they should on the paper, then I get a bit confused and lost and I am struggling to drive.”
When asked what he thought of his own abilities in regards to maximising braking zones, the 31-year-old responded: “Braking is my strength, since Formula Renault but when things are not working as I want, it’s my biggest weakness.
“It could be my strongest point or my weakest point. So when it’s not good I’m lost and I admit it. I need to work on that and I am sure that I can get better.
“The brake feeling has been terrible all weekend long, but Kevin [Magnussen] has got the same comment and he can drive around it. When the brake feeling is terrible we need to find a way that I can work with it.
“When they are great that’s my strongest point in racing, I’m braking very late, very hard, turning the car with grace. When I cannot do that then I just need to find more tools.”