Hinchcliffe set for first F1 run with Haas at Mugello as Grosjean stages emotional return
Haas will roll out two familiar racing names at Mugello on Friday, confirming F1 TV pundit and former IndyCar race winner James Hinchcliffe for a Testing of Previous Car outing alongside Romain Grosjean’s long-awaited return to a Formula 1 cockpit.
Hinchcliffe, 38, will sample F1 machinery for the first time in the team’s VF-23 — the car campaigned by Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen in 2023 — as part of a filmed feature for Formula 1’s official broadcast, set to air over the United States Grand Prix weekend next month. The Canadian won six IndyCar races between 2011 and 2021 and famously took pole for the Indianapolis 500 in 2016 before pivoting into the commentary box in recent years.
He’s already been playing coy, posting a seat-fit earlier this week with the caption: “Been a minute. Hopefully I remember what I’m doing. This is why I label my shoes…” The tone suggests Friday will be equal parts work and bucket-list moment.
The other headline is heavier. Grosjean will drive an F1 car for the first time since his 2020 Bahrain accident — the fireball that froze a sport and, ultimately, spared him with only burns to his hands. Haas has made a point of turning the day into a reunion: team principal Ayao Komatsu will step back into race engineering duties for the one-off, joined by several members of Grosjean’s original Haas crew. The Frenchman will also wear the helmet his children designed for what was supposed to be his farewell race in Abu Dhabi five years ago.
“I’m incredibly grateful to Gene Haas and to Ayao Komatsu for inviting me to participate in the TPC at Mugello,” Grosjean said. “I really can’t believe it’s been almost five years, but to come back and have this outing with my old team is truly something special. I’m excited to see everyone… and I’m also keen to be of use regarding the trackside agenda with the VF-23.”
Komatsu, who took over as team boss in early 2024, called the day “fitting” for everyone involved. “Romain and I have worked together throughout his entire Formula 1 career, so this test at Mugello is of particular significance,” he said. “It should be a fun day and knowing Romain as I do, I know he’ll want to give it his all as usual.”
Haas has leaned into TPC opportunities this year. Mugello — fast, flowing, and merciless on rhythm — fits the brief perfectly for reacquainting a driver with downforce while giving the team meaningful data on systems and procedures without burning through current-car testing restrictions. It’s also a track that flatters clean driving, which is why it’s often used for calibration work and, increasingly, storytelling.
That’s the intersection Hinchcliffe occupies on Friday. As a broadcaster, he’s comfortable explaining the fine print that fans usually don’t get to see. As a racer, he’ll relish finding the limit in a way that’s digestible on camera. Expect plenty of focus on the step change from an IndyCar to a modern F1 car: the braking, the energy recovery, and the load through Mugello’s Arrabbiata sweepers. Expect, too, a grin under the visor.
For Grosjean, the assignment is obviously more personal. He was part of Haas’s original driver lineup in 2016 and helped carry the fledgling operation to some of its best early results. The chance to close a loop in Italy, at a circuit that rewards commitment, will land well in the paddock. It’ll land even better with the engineers who’ve been trying to turn Haas’s recent stability off-track into sharper execution on it, with current drivers Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman pushing to convert opportunities on Sundays.
Haas has shown a knack for left-field cameos this year. Earlier in the season, the team put Kamui Kobayashi in the VF-23 for a run at Paul Ricard — another nod to racing pedigree and a smart use of the TPC framework. With Hinchcliffe added to the list, the program is doubling as a content engine and a development tool.
None of this moves the needle on the championship, but it moves a few needles that matter. Grosjean gets a moment that the sport arguably owed him. Hinchcliffe brings the audience closer to the raw experience. Haas gets laps, attention, and a good-news story at a time when good-news stories are hard-won.
If you want a neat summary: it’s a test day with a human pulse. And at Mugello, of all places, that’s worth tuning in for.
