Haas F1 team boss Ayao Komatsu targets KEY issues during Guenther Steiner’s reign

Guenther Steiner frowns while in Haas uniform — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 team boss targets KEY issues during Steiner’s reign

Haas have failed to claim a podium during their time in F1

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Sunday 18 August 2024 14:12 Updated: 16:02

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An F1 team boss has criticised Haas during Guenther Steiner’s tenure at the team.

Steiner led Haas from 2014 until 2023, where he encountered several difficulties whilst trying to improve the performance of the team.

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Haas finished last in the championship in 2021 and 2023, and have not stepped on the podium in any of the races they have contested.

In addition to their struggle for performance, the team have had a volatile line-up, with drivers such as Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher failing to deliver.

Haas eventually settled on the stable line-up of Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen

Ayao Komatsu reveals the reason for Haas’ struggles

After a series of crashes and mistakes from both drivers, Haas opted for the more experienced line-up of Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg.

Whilst this driver pairing has brought stability to the American outfit, the team have still struggled to alleviate themselves from the back of the grid.

At the start of the 2024 season, Steiner was axed from his role as Haas team principal after team owner, Gene Haas, became frustrated with the poor results.

The Drive to Survive star was replaced by Ayao Komatsu, who served alongside Steiner as the team’s trackside engineering director since 2016.

In a recent interview, the 48-year-old revealed the key issue during Steiner’s reign, criticising the ‘excuses’ for their poor performances.

Ayao Komatsu has criticised how Haas have handled their previous mistakes

"The reason [Gene] got frustrated over the years, for some there is an excuse like COVID [in 2020], but last year, there was no excuse," Komatsu said to RacingNews365.

"There was always some excuse like: 'okay, this year we are not developing because we are just preparing for next year.

"For 2023, there is no excuse and then what happened in 2023 is because we didn't fundamentally address the issues of 2019.

"That is people being in denial, pointing the finger at certain things and we were never working properly as a team, that was totally clear."