Stuart Morrison watches the race from his office in the paddock at Sakhir International Circuit. On the screen, in front of him, Romain Grosjean’s single-seater hits the barrier head-on. “I saw the fireball. I knew it was one of our cars,” said Haas Team Communications Manager.
At this time, November 29, 2020, the entire planet imagines the worst. Teams, drivers and fans are holding their breath.
“Immediately you’re like, this is bad, probably the worst crash I’m ever going to be involved in,” Morrison continued.
“Then you get the flow of information. Is it correct? We try to close communications when that happens, so there are only a few people talking to each other. »
Less than three years later, the 48-year-old is installed in Haas headquarters at the Miami Grand Prix to recount his memories to La Presse. Behind us, through the window overlooking the team village, we can see Romain Grosjean deep in conversation with Kevin Magnussen.
In eight years at Haas, this is the biggest crisis that Stuart Morrison has handled.
“We have a good communication system, that was important. Ultimately, he was correct, so we relayed that information first. Then he spent a few days in the hospital. »
Saved by the roll bar, Grosjean escaped virtually – and miraculously – unscathed, with scars on his hands.
“That accident created the equivalent of a crazy work week,” Morrison recalled. All the media in the world wanted to talk about it. I had requests not only from the motorsport media, but also from Good Morning America, CNN… All these media which normally would not have covered the race. »
Our meeting with Stuart Morrison takes place on May 7, a few hours before the race in Miami. Shaved head, well-trimmed beard, his transparent glasses on his nose, the friendly Scotsman devotes nearly half an hour of his time to La Presse. In front of him are two copies of the book Surviving to Drive, written by Haas Senior Director Guenther Steiner and released two days earlier.
If the name and face of Stuart Morrison are unknown to Montrealers, Montreal is far from unknown to Stuart Morrison. The native of Glasgow, Scotland lived in the metropolis for 12 years, from 2004 to 2015. His wife, Jennifer, grew up in Montreal. The couple and their two children left for England when the father of the family was hired by Haas in 2015, when the team made its arrival in F1.
Morrison had quite a career as a motorsports publicist before being hired by Haas. A graduate in film and media studies, he began in the field within the Formula Palmer Audi Series. Over the years he has worked for Canadian drivers, sponsors and teams.
As Director of Communications at Haas, Morrison is responsible for a team of three people. Among his tasks: planning schedules for Magnussen and Nico Hülkenberg, managing media requests, managing public relations for Guenther Steiner, creating content for social networks… and more.
It is he who, after each day of qualifying and each race, accompanies the Haas drivers to television interviews, then to the written media. A task not always as obvious as it looks, especially when the session on the track did not go as planned.
“It can be one of the hardest things because you’re dealing with someone who’s frustrated and the first thing you have to do is put a TV camera in front of them. »
Is it as fun and glamorous as it sounds, traveling around the world? we ask him.
“It is and it isn’t. For the youngest, it’s a great opportunity to get paid to see the world. […] People only post the best on Instagram and TV only shows the good side of things. But we work long days. We face many challenges and that’s part of the job, but it’s not necessarily always glamorous. »
Here, we are interrupted by Guenther Steiner, who asks Morrison a question about the schedule. “I’m very lucky; Guenther understands the role of the media, he understands how important it is to serve the media,” Morrison tells us after Steiner leaves.
Working in Formula 1, for a father of two children, requires sacrifices. Over the years, Stuart Morrison has missed his children’s and wife’s birthdays on more than one occasion.
When asked how long he plans to work in this field, Morrison hesitates. “It changes from race to race,” he said. If he wants to stay in F1 “for a long time”, he intends to reduce the number of trips.
“Motorsport has given me a great life. I have a lot of friends in the business. […] Maybe one day I will wake up and I will know that it is time. But for now, I don’t know. So I will continue. »
