Twelve months in the past, Ayao Komatsu was pessimistic when discussing Haas’ expectations for the 2024 season. He predicted the group can be the slowest on the grid in the beginning of the 12 months, and was not ready to brazenly admit he had set the group a goal of eighth within the constructors’ championship merely to have one thing to goal for.
Requested this week how totally different expectations and targets at the moment are, and the Haas group principal laughs as he displays on the distinction.
However that doesn’t imply there aren’t important areas of the group Komatsu desires to deal with. Actually, he’s been onerous at work restructuring the trackside group at Haas and bringing in new personnel over the winter, with one specifically certain to make headlines.
Whereas Ronan O’Hare will take care of Oliver Bearman, Laura Mueller can be Esteban Ocon’s race engineer, changing into the primary full-time feminine race engineer in fashionable Method 1. Not that the ‘feminine’ a part of that sentence is one thing Komatsu gave any time to.
“In the event you have a look at what number of feminine engineers we’ve got within the workplace, it’s undoubtedly greater than earlier than,” Komatsu says. “Nevertheless it’s not like I selected Laura as a result of she’s feminine. We don’t care about nationality, gender – it actually doesn’t matter. as a result of what issues is figure.
“How one can match into the group? How one can maximize the efficiency? And Laura and Ronan occurred to be the appropriate individuals. I imagine it’s the proper alternative.”
Mueller has risen by means of the ranks at Haas, her first F1 group, the place she began off as a simulator engineer after which grew to become one of many group’s efficiency engineers. With each of the brand new race engineers being comparatively inexperienced, the addition of a brand new chief race engineer within the type of Francesco Nenci – who contains Toyota and Sauber amongst his earlier groups – is seen as notably essential to including additional power to the set-up.
“They’ve each bought good potential and good dedication,” Komatsu says. “So we determined to advertise internally, as a result of that sends message for everybody as properly – that slightly than going for some huge names of expertise from outdoors, promote. Anyone might not have sufficient expertise to begin off with, however good potential, good work ethic, good communication… simply assist one another; assist.
“By way of expertise, it’s not an enormous quantity of expertise. In order that’s the place we actually must work as a group. After which it’s nice having Francesco. He’s the one having numerous expertise coming in as a chief race engineer.”
With new head of technique Carine Cridelich coming in from RB in March, and Mark Lowe returning to the group within the new sporting director function – a growth that included former group supervisor Pete Crolla leaving – there was a major overhaul of personnel that work hands-on at observe.
“What’s been the change is the trackside group,” he says. “It’s an enormous change, however I felt that’s one of many weakest areas final 12 months. After which the an increasing number of the automotive grew to become aggressive, sort of that uncovered it extra, in the event you like.
Haas exceeded expectations final 12 months, however Komatsu nonetheless believes the group is a piece in progress. Dom Romney/Motorsport Photos
“Then additionally the mentality as properly, by way of mindset… If you’re combating, when you’ve got the automotive – in the direction of the top of the season, we had the fifth-fastest automotive – some races like Abu Dhabi was wonderful as properly, however by way of execution… we left too many factors on the desk, from the trackside operation. So actually wanted to step up on that one.”
The modifications have been cemented by what Komatsu believes have been missed alternatives all through 2024, coming as early as the primary race in Bahrain. Though he acknowledges it was robust to have an effect with out including a chief race engineer or shifting on from former race engineers Mark Slade and Gary Gannon, Komatsu additionally believes an absence of coaching alternatives performed a component, and factors to the group’s new testing of earlier automotive (TPC) program as one other key growth.
Mueller, O’Hare and Nenci have been all choosing up their roles at Jerez final week as Ocon and Bearman examined the 2023 automotive, and have been capable of lay the foundations for his or her relationships in lower-pressure environment than an official pre-season check or race weekend. That this system was up and working simply two weeks into the brand new 12 months reveals how a lot Komatsu needed to prioritize that side of Haas.
The technical group designing the 2025 Haas automotive – which is able to run for the primary time at Silverstone on February 16 – stays unchanged, as Komatsu believes the likes of technical director Andrea de Sordo, head of aero Davide Paganelli, chief designer Tom Coupland and deputy Jonathan Heal did a “unbelievable job” final 12 months. However that happened after specializing in the Maranello-based group first, and figuring out the short-term ache of revamping the trackside set-up would wish to attend.
“The factor is 12 months in the past I needed to deal with precedence AAA, primary. However even one or two issues in precedence A – which is the technical aspect, Andrea’s aspect, Davide, Tom, Jonathan – we needed to actually make the group, and guarantee that all the actual automotive suggestions goes by means of the technical workplace and wind tunnel in order that we will develop the automotive appropriately. In order that I couldn’t delay a second. I needed to actually go for that one. I used to be actually targeted on that.
“Then numerous different areas that we modified 1737475274, I knew it’s lower than splendid, however I can’t change too many issues as a result of we’re such a small group with no margin. We’re going to only disintegrate. So I actually needed to be brutal by way of, ‘OK, I do know this stuff usually are not nice, however I actually need to disregard it till such stage that we will cope with it as a group’.
“After which in my thoughts – I by no means stated this to anybody again then – it was, ‘We’re going to do that trackside group for a 12 months after which we’ll revamp’. So it’s the appropriate timing, however it nonetheless doesn’t change the truth that it’s going to be an enormous problem for us.”
So the place does all of that depart Komatsu’s targets for Haas heading into 2025? Regardless of the preliminary telling snort, it’s very a lot a deal with extra of the identical.
“Sights (are) set on consistency,” he says. “We completed P7 final 12 months. Within the historical past of Haas, throughout the years, I don’t suppose we’ve been aggressive throughout seasons in an analogous method.
“What was encouraging final 12 months was our competitiveness elevated by means of the season. Then we scored essentially the most factors within the final quarter of the 12 months. Since Monza, we solely missed a degree in Brazil. That was encouraging.
“I’d wish to proceed that stage of consistency. However I solely count on competitors to be tighter this 12 months, Alpine, Williams, Sauber and RB – they’re all going to be higher as properly. So, I don’t understand how packed the midfield can be, however I count on it to be tight.”
