Why F1 team of the year might just be Haas

He rose to the challenge in great style, and proved to be a very capable leader who motivated the troops.

The key to success was having a more consistent car than previously. The VF-23 had been quick, but it took more out of its tyres than rivals, triggering early pit stops that usually put the drivers out of contention for points.

That was addressed for 2024, and with the support of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen – both of whom could see a bigger picture – Komatsu was able to push the team forward.

“From the get-go, they completely bought into the idea of how to improve the team,” says Komatsu.

“Kevin and Nico, they helped each other out on the track, off the track”

“Of course, Kevin’s got decent experience of this team, like six seasons before this year, so he knew the people, he knew what I was facing. He knew the strengths and weaknesses. But he’s been so positive and helpful in moving the team around.

“And then Nico, even though before this year he was only with us for one year, he saw enough. And he’s a very clever guy as well, and his work ethic is really, really good. So again, whatever discussion I had, both of them were completely on board.”

Komatsu cites the example of Bahrain testing, where the team took the unusual course of concentrating on high fuel and race runs in order to ensure that it had got fully on top of the previous season’s tyre issues.

“When I decided to do the high fuel long run only, to start off the drivers were not happy,” he says. “But I said look, this is what we need to do because of this, that’s the biggest problem. If we don’t get answer on this one, we’re not going to move forward. But then once we were on the same page again, they never looked back.

“They completely bought into it, on board, worked as a member of the team, and then they made a great contribution. So that team dynamics, and Kevin and Nico, they helped each other out on the track, off the track, and they actually made my job easier.

“In the sense that if you have to swap positions or use team orders or whatever, or in a run programme run different fuel loads, different priorities that may make one of them look worse than he really is, they don’t care. They know that we are working for the team.”

On more than one occasion Magnussen conducted a robust defence as he protected Hülkenberg up ahead.

As the results began to come so the team had a clear sense of purpose in battling RB for sixth in the championship, with a ninth place finish here or a 10th place there making the difference.

It was only Alpine’s astonishing double podium in the Interlagos rain that pushed both teams down a slot, with Haas eventually claiming seventh.

Raised expectations

There was some disappointment after the Abu Dhabi finale that Alpine had snuck past, but nevertheless it was a great season for the team.

“I think you’ve got to look at it that if somebody told us that we got to finish P7 this year we’d have all signed it off at the start of the year,” says Komatsu.

“But of course, the bar is raised every single time we do better, our expectations are higher, the bar of acceptance, what we are fighting for each race, which is good.

“So everybody after the race was of course disappointed to miss out on P6, but at the same time, we exceeded our expectations. And then everybody says it’s good to be disappointed missing out on P6, because that’s where our bar is now.

“And also the mentality as well, for the last four seasons or whatever we’ve not been fighting for eighth, ninth, tenth places — just existing. Coming from that to the place where every single race weekend you’re turning up fighting for something that matters it’s different, the pressure is different.

“The mentality needs to change. But that takes time. You cannot suddenly change mentality. It a bit of a cliché, but you get a winning habit. So this is part of developing the team, improving the team.”

To his great credit Komatsu is not standing still – he knows that there’s still much more to do.

“We’re getting there, but there’s so many things to improve,” he says. “In terms of execution, we’re not there yet, but it’s part of the learning curve.

“If you look at McLaren as well, they had amazing car, but they made some big mistakes earlier. Not to criticise them, but if you’re not used to that situation, that’s extra hard.

“As an F1 team, you’ve got to look at every single department. So clearly aero guys, designers, the production department, programme management made a huge step. That’s why we could develop the car in-season, in the manner that is not stretching the organisation, if you like, and deliver on time, just so many people work behind the scenes on that.

“But then in terms of execution now, we need to step back. But it’s not being negative. It’s just, let’s say simplistically, you’ve got 10 items in the organisation, one or two or three items improve, then those seven items, they just need to improve.”

In other words while the design folk back at base did a great job to keep up in the development race, which is something Haas was always weak at, Komatsu admits that the team can still do better at the track.

“I’m just disappointed in the sense the car is so quick now,” he says. “So I just feel like I let down our aero guys, our designer guys, the guys who worked on the production programme and everything to bring this car onto the track, I just felt this car deserves P6, and I couldn’t deliver that.

“So I just feel I let those people down. That’s the bit which is disappointing. But at the same time, when you look at these guys so happy, of course, they’re disappointed, but they are thinking like, well, but still had amazing season, which is true. So, yeah, it’s a bit mixed, but I think overall, we should be proud of ourselves.”

Komatsu admits that expectations have risen in all areas.

“We are fighting for P6-P7 in the championship,” he says. “We are fighting for points, top of midfield. If you’re not used to that situation, it’s like your baseline shifts, then the pressure on how you conduct yourself, how all the detail matters, this whole level needs to improve.

“That’s what I mean by mentality. So if you are trying to fight for P5/P6 in the championship next year, every single level has to be good enough for that.

“Now I feel like this year, yes, we are fighting for P6 in the later half of the season, because the car is good, but in terms of our overall race team, we just weren’t there to be executing it.”

Moving to the next level

He adds: “When I talk about mentality, what we expect of ourselves, the standard we need to strive to is higher now. We’ve got to get that, we’ve got to reach that, and then everybody has to buy into it. Everybody, every single job they do, if you’re a control engineer, performance engineer, race engineer or IT or whoever needs to raise their game.

“And then if somebody was just going through the job list ticking off, that’s not good enough anymore. You got to be proactive. And you’ve got to be helping each other more. Not like, okay, I’ve got this role, I do this job, job done.

“No, you’ve got to think about the bigger picture. What can we do more to help the team get to the next level? So unless we have that kind of mentality, this is such a competitive world, you won’t be able to fight for the top of the midfield.”

It’s all change on the driver front for 2025 with Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman coming in and providing an intriguing mixture of experience and youth.

There will also be more resources to hand, with a new technical partnership with Toyota that has yet to be fully defined, and more hard cash to spend thanks to a $30m boost from the F1 prize fund provided by the climb up the order.

“Our target is to be on the budget cap next year,” says Komatsu. “That’s another thing with Haas, we’ve never been on the budget cap. How can you be competitive? So if you’re serious about being competitive, you’ve got to be on the budget. So yes, that’s our target.”

And that finance will help bolster staff numbers at the smallest team on the grid: “We are trying to grow, but recruitment is hard, and finding good people is not easy. But there’s no doubt we need to grow. We’re below critical mass, shall I say?

“We’re just about to be saturated all the time, and then anything happens, we’re completely overflowing. So that’s not sustainable. I want to make this thing sustainable. We’re going to be able to operate, let’s say normal operation, with some margin. At the moment I feel there’s very, very little margin.”

Hülkenberg, who has now moved on to Sauber and Audi, is quick to praise Komatsu.

“You forget quickly where we were last year, and how down we were some days, and how much shit we had to eat!” says the German

“It was tough last year. And to have come out and turned that situation around like we did, it’s a hell of an achievement from everyone in the team.

“I really enjoyed being part of that. It’s been very enjoyable with everyone. I think Ayao has done a fantastic job this year as TP. So many things came at him, and he’s really worked through all of them. It’s been impressive and good.

“They’re a strong contender, if they keep working like this, I know they’re a serious contender in the future, probably in and around the fight for P5.”

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