Haas Boss Confident in Team’s Capabilities Despite Recent Setbacks in Formula 1
As the Formula 1 season heats up, Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu remains optimistic about his team’s chances, claiming that their rivals’ race pace is “nothing special.” Despite a recent dry spell, Komatsu believes that Haas can still compete with the top teams, citing the need for improved execution during race weekends.
Haas had a strong start to the season, securing points in three of the first five races. However, they have failed to add to their tally in the last three rounds, allowing rivals like Red Bull Racing (RB) to make up ground. RB has accumulated 17 points in the same period, moving 17 points clear in sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship.
At the recent Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola, Haas had opportunities to score points, but ultimately missed out. Nico Hulkenberg’s strong start saw him edge out Yuki Tsunoda, but an undercut by the RB driver allowed him to regain the position. Hulkenberg was left exposed to other drivers later in the race, while Kevin Magnussen’s fresher rubber was underutilized due to a delayed pit stop.
“We are fighting with them, as we saw in Imola,” he told Formu1a.uno. “In qualifying, they were certainly faster, but their race pace was nothing special. However, we must improve in the execution of the race, we must be perfect.”
Komatsu acknowledged that the team could have done things differently to support Hulkenberg during the race, saying, “After the race, we saw that with Nico, there were some things we could have done differently, but it’s not his fault. It was up to us to help him.”
The Haas team principal also emphasized the importance of perfecting pit stops, citing Magnussen’s situation as an example. “While with Kevin, if we had made the right pit at the right time, we could have fought with Tsunoda for points.”
With Haas being the smallest team on the grid in terms of personnel, some might argue that this constitutes a significant disadvantage. However, Komatsu disagrees, saying, “It’s true, a few more people would be useful, but in the end, one decides, so it’s also useless to have 20 people, also because talking with everyone would then just be chaos.”
Instead, Komatsu credits the improved dialogue between departments as a key factor in Haas’ improved performance this season. “The communication between the various departments and factories we have has improved a lot, there is much more dialogue, and the procedures have improved,” he said.
As the Formula 1 schedule moves forward, Haas will be looking to capitalize on their strong starts and improve their execution to stay in the hunt for points. With the current Formula 1 standings tightly packed, every point counts, and Komatsu is confident that his team can deliver.
🔗 Source