"How the hell did he pull that off?" - Romain Grosjean recalls insane Fernando Alonso incident

Romain Grosjean has admitted to being blown away by Renault team-mate Fernando Alonso's raw pace. It made him look up to the Spanish legend and gleam as much information from him as he could.

Grosjean began his F1 career with Renault as a test driver in 2009, and returned to the sport with the Lotus F1 Team in 2012. He stayed there until 2016, before finally moving on to Haas F1 for five seasons.

In the latest episode of the podcast hosted by 2016 F1 world champion Nico Rosberg, titled "F1 Miracle", Romain Grosjean describes his experience with his Spanish teammate during the 2009 season. When asked about the most memorable moments involving Alonso, there was one in particular, from that year's Japanese Grand Prix, which stood out for the 35-year-old. He said:

"I was faster than him [Alonso] in free practice and then comes qualifying. On the first set of tires, I'm faster than him, and then, the second set of tires... he kills me."

After being faster all through Friday and going through the first set of tires in qualifying, it was when the second set came into play that Alonso's experience and raw talent hit the Swiss-French driver.

I'm like, "How the hell did he pull that off!" I mean he killed me like three tenths in one corner, that was it."

The incident was a big inspiration for Romain Grosjean, who claimed he made good use of his limited time alongside the world champion to absorb all that he could.

"Kimi was Kimi": Romain Grosjean

For two years, Romain Grosjean had another world champion as his teammate in Kimi Raikkonen, better known as "The Iceman" for his unflappable demeanor. Grosjean revealed that the two teammates did not speak much.

Here's how Grosjean described how he felt about Raikkonen on a personal level:

Never forget the time Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean escorted Daft Punk to the grid during the 2013 Monaco GP. Peak of the modern Lotus era. 🏁
#F1 https://t.co/hdBL9E4Ysh

"Kimi was Kimi. Even though he has changed a lot since he got kids for the much better."

Romain Grosjean also shared a hilarious story from the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix in Spa, where he was "shocked" when the Finn congratulated him on the birth of his child, despite no one apparently being told of the news!