Steiner: 'How we will develop further as a team we will only see later'
F1 News
- GPblog.com
That Haas has been running into problems for years. It is no secret. 2019 and 2020 were chaotic with few points, and in 2021 they decided not to develop further, with all the consequences. So how are things going for Haas these days?
The decision not to further develop the car in 2021 had to do with the new technical regulations for the 2022 season. The Haas top team wanted to start developing the car for that season in advance. Eventually, the US team finished eighth in the constructors' classification in 2022 with 37 points. Not the best performance, then.
What about 2023?
At the season opener of the 2023 season in Bahrain, the team failed to secure any points: Nico Hulkenberg finished 15th (and received two-time penalties due to track limits), and Kevin Magnussen achieved a meagre 13th place. So it all doesn't sound too positive, but team boss Guenther Steiner remains calm about it.
"We have the budget ceiling, and now we can [start developing]. So I don't panic if, after a few races, we are not where we want to be because we can catch up in the future," the Italian told Motorsport-Total.
Steiner thinks that at halfway through the season, they can start identifying what their weaknesses are and what their final goal will be for the season. It is now time to determine what needs to improve within the team and how that should be done. Points at the first few races or not, the team boss does not yet see a storm brewing.