Magnussen claims Haas addressing ‘elephants in the room’ after Steiner F1 exit

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Kevin Magnussen believes new Haas boss Ayao Komatsu is already addressing the ‘elephants in the room’ at the American F1 team since replacing Guenther Steiner.

Team owner Gene Haas opted to let Steiner leave at the end of the 2023 F1 season when his contract expired. The Italian engineer had overseen the Haas entry ever since they arrived in the pinnacle of motorsport in 2016. But their troubles last year drew a change in leadership.

Haas registered their second-worst campaign in Formula 1 to date with Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg behind the wheel. Only in 2021 when the team finished the campaign without a single point had they ended a season bottom of the constructors’ standings before last year.

Kevin Magnussen feels Haas’ development in Formula 1 ‘just hasn’t been good’

Hulkenberg offered nine of Haas’ 12 points in 2023 to take P16 in the drivers’ championship with Magnussen in P19. But they only finished in the points during one and three Grand Prix respectively. Hulkenberg also scored points in one of the six Sprint events throughout 2023.

Magnussen registered Haas’ first points of the year with a P10 finish at the Saudi Arabian GP in round two. But the 31-year-old could only match his result at the Miami GP and Singapore GP. Hulkenberg finished the Australian GP in P7 and later the Sprint at the Austrian GP in P6.

So, Komatsu has changed from his role as director of engineering to replace Steiner as Haas’ team principal. Gene Haas sought to make the change after his team failed to make progress with their upgrades in 2023. Magnussen even reverted to an old-spec car for the final races.

Ayao Komatsu is addressing the ‘elephants in the room’ after replacing Guenther Steiner

Magnussen ran a different specification VF-23 to Hulkenberg over the final rounds so Haas would compare their data. The American-owned team took a major upgrade package to the United States GP in October. But it failed to address their woeful tyre degradation problems.

Haas would occasionally qualify well with Hulkenberg taking second at the Canadian GP and Magnussen starting the Miami GP in fourth. But the pair fell backwards during the races. So, Komatsu addressing Haas’ problems early excites Magnussen ahead of the 2024 F1 season.

“I love Guenther,” he said, via quotes by Reuters. “I’ve had a great relationship with [him] in the time I’ve been with Haas. But it’s also exciting to see some change, some real change.

“I think it’s great that Ayao is already addressing some of the elephants in the room, like our trajectory on development for a season just hasn’t been good… It’s certainly very exciting times for us in Haas.”