Ayao Komatsu explains the ‘bottleneck’ he expects will become a problem for Haas

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It has been a positive season so far for Haas having doubled their Formula 1 points total compared to last season.

While their driver lineup has remained the same, changes were made within their management including the sacking of team principal Guenther Steiner and replacing him with Ayao Komatsu.

The 48-year-old Japanese engineer tempered expectations heading into the season, but impressive points finishes from Nico Hulkenberg have enabled them to surge to seventh in the Constructors’ standings.

But while they have enjoyed a great run on track so far, Komatsu highlighted a problem the team faces off the track at their factory setup in an interview with The Race.

Ayao Komatsu highlights Haas problem

Haas is one of the more unique operations in F1 with factories in both the UK, Italy, and the US. Although the team is registered as being a US entity, their cars are built at Dallara’s headquarters in Italy.

Komatsu identified one potential problem that could impact Haas in the future: “I spent time in the UK trying to talk with as many managers and guys as possible, then I went to Italy for one week, I realised really location wasn’t the issue. It’s just communication.

“The biggest issue we have is communication where people are working together, so I just focused on that. At some point, location will become the bottleneck. But I don’t believe we are hitting that just yet.

“I cannot tell you if that’s going to happen in two years’ time, five years’ time, this is constantly evolving. But at the moment, it’s really working well.”

The wrong decision made by Ayao Komatsu

Next year Haas will have an all-new driver lineup, with French star Esteban Ocon joining British driver Oliver Bearman.

Bearman joins the grid after his impressive debut during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix with Ferrari, while Ocon is leaving Alpine after spending four years at the team.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Haas F1 Team from team principal to Ferrari relationship

Komatsu has admitted that signing Ocon might be the wrong decision, believing that he could be naive in thinking he can set ‘clear rules’ for drivers.

Ocon is known for being a hard teammate to go up against, but with Bearman in his rookie year, it should enable Haas to establish a number-one driver between the pair.