Haas have launched their 2025 F1 car at Silverstone earlier today with Esteban Ocon behind the wheel of the VF-25. While teams like Williams, Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Mercedes are hosting separate events to launch their 2025 challengers, the VF-25 made its track debut this morning as the American outfit completed its first filming day of the year at the iconic British circuit.
Haas will reveal their official 2025 race livery at the F1 75 season launch event that will take place at the O2 Arena in London on Tuesday.
After finishing at the bottom of the constructors’ standings for the second time in three seasons in 2023, the Banbury-based squad turned its fortunes around under the leadership of Ayao Komatsu to secure the seventh position in the championship table last year.
Furthermore, with veteran duo Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hülkenberg parting ways with Haas at the end of last season, the team is keen to build on their encouraging 2024 campaign with a fresh driver line-up comprising Ollie Bearman and Ocon.
Why Haas decided to run Ocon at Silverstone
It was Frenchman Ocon who got the first taste of the Haas 2025 F1 car at Silverstone today. Meanwhile, Bearman is due to log his first few miles during their second filming day. It will take place in Bahrain two days before pre-season testing commences at the same track.
At their select media day last month, Haas team boss Komatsu addressed why Ocon was allowed to keep the VF-25 to himself throughout the duration of their first filming day. The Japanese elaborated that they were simply more confident with Bearman’s installation, given his super-sub appearances for Haas on two occasions last season.
“We’ll have Esteban [Ocon] driving, because in terms of driver installation, he is more challenging.
“We just want to make sure 100% Esteban’s installation is fine. So, if we have got an issue, we have more time to react. With Ollie [Bearman], we’re pretty confident. We’re pretty confident with Esteban as well, but we’re more confident with Ollie’s installation than Esteban.
“So, Esteban will run first and then Ollie in the Bahrain shakedown. That means Ollie will start pre-season testing.”
Ocon’s fresh start with Haas after partnership with Alpine ended on a sour note
In June last year, Alpine announced that Ocon would leave the French outfit at the end of their 2024 campaign. The news of his departure hit the headlines just over a week after his controversial collision with teammate Pierre Gasly at the Monaco GP, which had left the team management heavily displeased.
While Ocon’s relationship with the team had deteriorated considerably by the time the Abu Dhabi GP was on the horizon, Alpine’s decision to replace him a race early with Jack Doohan garnered ample criticism. Despite team principal Oliver Oakes labelling the decision as favourable for all involved parties, the 28-year-old held a different opinion and stated that he wanted their fruitful partnership to end on a better note.
Having signed a multi-year contract with the one-time race winner in July, Haas expected Ocon to drive for the team in the 2024 post-season testing in Abu Dhabi, based on a verbal agreement Komatsu had reached with the Alpine team principal. As such, when reports emerged that the Enstone-based team had used the post-season testing opportunity with Haas as leverage to have Ocon stand down from his seat before the final race of the season, the Japanese claimed that he was unaware of such a stipulation.
Regardless of the contractual obligations, this controversy left no room for doubt that the Qatar GP was a disappointing end to the Frenchman’s five-year-long partnership with Alpine. Now, the Haas F1 team offers Ocon a fresh new beginning as they embark on the journey of establishing themselves as a strong midfield contender on the grid.
How the Haas F1 team has fared in the ground effect era so far
2022
Heading into the first year of F1’s new ground effect era, Haas found some success early in their campaign with Kevin Magnussen rejoining the team. He scored points thrice in the first four races, including an impressive P5 finish in Bahrain. However, as the season progressed, the car’s inherent design flaws became apparent, and both drivers found it increasingly difficult to bag points due to their persistent battle against tyre degradation on Sundays.
A mid-season resurgence, albeit short-lived, offered Haas some much-needed motivation, with both Mick Schumacher and Magnussen scoring points in back-to-back races. Unfortunately, their upgrades didn’t bring the desired performance gains, and the Dane’s brilliant pole position at Interlagos was the sole highlight of the second half of their 2022 campaign.
In a season that saw Haas experience the loss of their title sponsor, impacting their budget and development capabilities, their eighth-place finish, nevertheless, represented an upturn in fortunes after their abysmal 2021 F1 campaign.
2023
Unlike the progress they had made the year before, Haas failed to take a step forward in 2023 and finished dead last in the championship standings with only a dozen points under their belt. Their early-season advantage, which saw them score eleven points in the first five races, melted away as rivals caught up with superior upgrades.
Even the experienced duo of Magnussen and Hülkenberg, who had replaced Schumacher ahead of the 2023 season, struggled to find consistency with the VF-23. Poor car design, particularly in relation to tyre degradation, led to strong qualifying performances but weak race pace, with the VF-23 overheating tyres during long stints.
After years of underperformance, owner Gene Haas ultimately decided to part ways with Guenther Steiner, who had served as team principal of Haas since their arrival into F1 back in 2016. Komatsu, the team’s Director of Engineering at the time, succeeded him ahead of the 2024 season.
2024
While Haas’s underwhelming trajectory in recent years can be attributed to the leadership of Steiner, or lack thereof, the team underwent a sweeping transformation in the past twelve months with Komatsu at the helm of the campaign. In terms of setting objectives, formulating strategies, and honing communication, the Banbury-based squad made visible improvements and bagged 58 points in 2024, nearly five times more than their previous haul.
With the VF-24 generating more consistent downforce at the rear in comparison to its predecessor, Haas launched a fairly competitive campaign from the get-go. Despite their difficulties in the medium- and high-speed corners in the first half of the season, the upgrade package introduced at the United States GP helped them improve the aerodynamic load and make crucial performance gains.
Hülkenberg, in particular, mounted an impressive 2024 campaign. With the 37-year-old scoring points on thirteen occasions, including sprint races, and finishing P11 a remarkable seven times, Haas became a reliable threat in the midfield over the course of the season. While Magnussen’s drives weren’t as impressive as the German’s, especially in the first two-thirds of the season, an improved VF-24 gave him the confidence to bid farewell to his F1 career on a high note.
Haas ultimately narrowly missed out on sixth place in the championship to Alpine. Nonetheless, they also scored points in eight of the last nine Grands Prix, registering their strongest-ever end to a season.
2025
Heading into the final year of the current ground effect era, the Haas F1 team has not only achieved financial self-sufficiency for the first time in history but also signed an advantageous technical partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing. The restructured team is looking forward to building on their progress from last season and achieving similar or better results consistently throughout their 2025 campaign.
