Alex Rossi recalls blunt F1 rejection from Haas team

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Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi has revealed how his unsolicited offer to race for Haas in 2016, when the team first entered Formula 1, was met with a blunt rejection.

Born in California, Rossi spent most of his formative years in motorsport racing in Europe.

From GP3 in 2010 to Formula Renault in 2012 and then on to GP2 a year later, the young American driver raced through the junior ranks to eventually earn himself a seat with Manor Marussia for the last five races of the 2015 season.

Rossi's best result was a P12 finish at the US Grand Prix in Austin, but the prospect of an American team joining the grid in 2016 naturally encouraged him to introduce himself to Haas.

Unfortunately, his services were promptly rejected by the US outfit.

"There were some conversations and then, in Monza of 2015, without mincing any words, it was basically, from management, ‘We are not interested in you’," recalled Rossi, speaking on the latest 'Beyond the Grid' podcast.

"‘We don’t think any Americans are qualified to race in Formula 1 at this point and you are best to go off and go your own way’. That was the conversation.

"The Haas conversations were very short and to the point. There is no violin that I look for, it’s just a part of the sport.

"If I had to say I had a problem with something, it is purely just that there are commitments and there were things that were said and done with Haas that ultimately didn’t happen for one reason or another."

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The following year, Haas lined up on the grid in Melbourne with Romain Grosjean and former Sauber driver Esteban Gutierrez.

As for Rossi, after Manor announced Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto as its drivers for 2016, the young American followed Haas' advice and went his own way.

Rossi switched to IndyCar with Andretti Autosport and despite his hesitance to race on the series' ovals, the then 24-year-old achieved a shock win in the 2016 Indianapolis 500.

Rossi would go on to win six more times in IndyCar and he remains to this day one of the series' stalwarts, still racing with Andretti Autosport.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.