Just after a week to forget for Haas in Melbourne, where they finished with no points, the team delivered a surprise in Shanghai with Esteban Ocon and Ollie Bearman scoring a double points finish at the F1 Chinese GP, and team boss Ayao Komatsu was beaming after it.
Finishing P5 and P8, Haas have been boosted to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship.
First points of the season for Haas F1 at the Chinese GP
A major shift occurred for Haas between the season opener and at the F1 Chinese GP.
Opting for a one-stop for Ocon and a reverse hard-medium tyre strategy for Bearman, the VF-25’s potential seemed to change overnight.
Komatsu claimed that their poor performance in Melbourne was “a shock” to the team, but in China, the car came alive.
The VF-25 had high degradation in the Sprint. In the Grand Prix itself, they were mighty. Ocon surged through from 11th to 7th before the DSQs, with Bearman bouncing back from a Q1 exit to end up 10th on the road.
Regarding the communication side of things, Haas changed both race engineers over the winter. Laura Müller is working with Esteban Ocon, and Ronan O’Hare with Ollie Bearman. The Japanese engineer did not mince his words about the improvement in communication compared to last year with Gary Gannon (Nico Hülkenberg) and Mark Slade (Kevin Magnussen).
“This circuit is very different (to Australia), but the good thing is the reaction from the whole team. Everyone, various departments, people in Italy, UK track side, US, all working together.
“We didn’t get the car set-up right for the Sprint, but then we corrected it.
“Then just communication during the race, night and day from last year.”
Haas are now sixth in the championship with 14 points, ahead of Aston Martin, Sauber, RB, and Alpine.
Haas’s tyre strategy at the F1 Chinese GP
In 2023, Haas continuously struggled with tyre degradation on their car. However, it has become a strength since Komatsu took charge.
In Shanghai, Ocon managed 45 laps on the hards in his second stint, and Bearman pulled off a hard-medium strategy, bagging them both points after the Brit did 30 laps on mediums in the second stint, passing cars in the process.
“Ollie’s feedback from the first stint was really good. We had confidence with Ollie’s data that we can go to the end with Esteban if we manage it okay.
“Honestly… quite often last year we didn’t get the tyre management right, but communication is so much better. So happy just in all aspects.”
Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin finished behind both at the Chinese GP, showing Haas’s major improvement and strategic gains thus far.
Stroll noted, “they were much faster than us in the race today.”
Komatsu’s impact on the team
Since taking over as team principal, Komatsu has emphasised working in collaboration.
Shanghai proved his approach is working. From factory staff to the race engineers on the radio, Haas operated well, a far cry from the disjointed efforts of previous seasons.
“Yeah, honestly, I’m so proud of this team,” he reiterated.
“I think Suzuka is going to be hard. I’m not kidding, but I’m going to enjoy this moment. I’m so proud of the team.”
