He initially continued in the test driver role at Renault for 2009, but took over Piquet's seat in the wake of the Crashgate controversy from the onwards. Grosjean qualified 14th at the . He was knocked out of Q2 0.323 seconds off the pace of teammate Fernando Alonso. He finished 15th in the race after a first lap collision with Luca Badoer necessitated a stop for a new front wing. For the next round in Belgium Grosjean qualified 19th, which he blamed on traffic and yellow flags. In the race he was eliminated on the first lap after a collision with Jenson Button. At the , Grosjean qualified a career best 12th, but made a poor start, damaged his car with contact at the first corner, spun on the second lap, and finished 15th. He described himself as "very disappointed" after the race.