PREMA’s reserve driver Romain Grosjean drops two-word reaction after an unfortunate early exit from the Rolex 24 

Romain Grosjean expressed his disappointment after getting ruled out of the Rolex 24 at Daytona within the first hour and a half. The Frenchman and two of his other three teammates didn't get to drive a single lap at the endurance event.

Lamborghini's SC63 had to be retired by Mirko Bortolotti in lap 34 at the Daytona International Speedway owing to an overheating issue for the internal combustion engine. The team's debut at the Rolex 24 in the GTP class had ended by the 1 hour 27 minute mark. The team's three other drivers, Romain Grosjean, ex-F1 driver Daniil Kvyat, and Edoardo Mortara, couldn't participate at the event.

Grosjean, who signed with PREMA Racing's IndyCar team as its reserve driver for this year, took to Instagram to share his feelings in just two words. He shared a post with a photo of the No. 63 Lamborghini and wrote:

"Short lived."

Lamborghini also made an Instagram post to applaud the team for its effort up until the retirement and promised to come back stronger. The caption to the post read:

"Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be. Mechanical issues brought an early end to our first 24-hour race as an Official Factory Team but the teamwork and passion to make it to Daytona was a victory on its own. This is motorsport. We win and lose together but we will work even harder to come back stronger for the next race in Sebring! 🇺🇸 Thanks to the entire team and our drivers @mirkobortolotti, @grosjeanromain, @edomortara and @danydk1 💚 "

This early retirement made matters worse for Lamborghini's racing efforts, as it had already withdrawn from the 2025 World Endurance Championship. For Romain Grosjean too, who lost his full-time IndyCar seat with Juncos Hollinger Racing for 2025, it means one less race to compete in an already bleak schedule.

---

PREMA Racing IndyCar drivers think highly of reserve driver Romain Grosjean

Rolex 24 at Daytona - Source: Getty

PREMA Racing launched its IndyCar team at an event in Charlotte on January 11. To everybody's surprise, the team announced Romain Grosjean as its reserve driver, an unusual sight in IndyCar. The team's rookie driver Robert Shwartzman later revealed how Grosjean's addition was a 'late call'.

Nonetheless, both Shwartzman and his teammate Callum Ilott expect only positive to come out of the Frenchman working for PREMA. Appearing on the Pit Pass Indy podcast, Shwartzman said about Grosjean:

"I don't know Romain really close, I've never worked with him before, so we need to get to know each other. But definitely, he's gonna get his input in the team, try to help, and guide me in some things. Each opinion is a good opinion. So to listen to him and I'll try to improve some things."

Ilott, who will race in his third full-time IndyCar season in 2025, echoed Shwartzman to commend Grosjean.

"Maybe it adds, I don't know, an extra level to IndyCar. Obviously, it's a very tough series on the driver's side. It's hard to stay in the loop, and I think that's important. You know I struggled a bit last year being out of the loop. Hopefully, that can add to it and Romain's a good guy, super fast, he knows his stuff, and I think, when he's there, he's gonna be helping us as well," he said.

Romain Grosjean's 2024 season with Juncos Hollinger Racing was relatively underwhelming. Unlike his first three IndyCar seasons, where he scored at least one podium, last year witnessed none. A fourth-place finish at Laguna Seca was his best. JHR replaced him to sign Conor Daly and Sting Ray Robb for 2025.