Haas are exceeding all expectations in 2024, having secured 27 points in thirteen rounds. The American team have completely changed the narrative that surrounded them heading into this year. Ayao Komatsu deserves huge credit for the turnaround at Haas, especially given the effectiveness of the upgrades introduced in Silverstone. The Japanese team principal believes that in previous years, baseless excuses were made for poor development.
Ayao Komatsu implements big changes at Haas
When Komatsu was appointed in January, he was adamant there was more potential for Haas to unlock.
He argued that inefficiency and poor coordination were the team’s main limitations. The 48-year-old made clear that increased funding would not provide instant solutions.
This assessment, whilst unpopular at the time, has proven extremely accurate in the months since.
Not only did Haas address their excessive tyre degradation in testing (after Komatsu implemented an aggressive run plan focusing on race simulations), but the team’s mid-season updates have unlocked significant performance.
Prior to this season, Haas were a team who habitually fell behind in the development race.
Considering that big teams like Ferrari and Aston Martin have struggled, Komatsu’s personnel deserve huge credit for making steady progress.
Komatsu identifies “excuses” from previous management
Speaking in an interview with racingnews365, Ayao Komatsu spoke candidly about the team’s old approach:
“There was always some excuse [for poor development]. Like – ‘Okay, this year we are not developing because we are just preparing for next year.
“For 2023, there [was] no excuse. 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.”
Although Haas works with significantly fewer resources than other teams, their typical mid-season decline can be attributed to several factors beyond this.
This has now been identified, with the team working on improved coordination, planning and organisation in 2024.
Of course, this does not take away the inherent limitations that come with having inferior infrastructure. However, Komatu’s new direction has contributed to creating a far more competitive F1 outfit.
