Haas mechanics and engineers have been left perplexed this season as their car demonstrates strong qualifying performances but struggles to maintain the same level of competitiveness during races.
One prime example of this puzzling trend is new recruit Nico Hulkenberg, who has consistently finished behind his starting position in all but two races so far in the 2023 season, mirroring the performance of his teammate Kevin Magnussen.
Team boss Guenther Steiner is acutely aware of the issue and has expressed their determination to investigate and rectify the situation.
“We’re currently investigating the discrepancy between our excellent qualifying performance and our less favorable race performance,” Steiner acknowledged. “We’re trying to identify the underlying causes, and for the upcoming races, we aim to find a middle ground between the two sessions, qualifying and the race. We’re working diligently to discover what we can do in the upcoming races to improve the situation.”
Steiner further emphasized their commitment to resolving the issue, stating, “We’re putting in a lot of effort to understand why this disparity between being fast in qualifying and struggling in the race exists. We have a few leads, and it will undoubtedly impact the design of the VF-24. We will need to eliminate this feature from the car for next year.”
With experienced Formula 1 drivers like Hulkenberg and Magnussen in their ranks, Steiner acknowledged the importance of their feedback in shaping the team’s development direction.
“I must admit, I’m actually very happy with both Kevin and Nico in how they actively contribute to solving the problem and finding a solution. They play a vital role in determining short-term and long-term fixes for our issues, and they maintain a positive attitude. They understand that we can overcome our current struggles,” Steiner commented.
Approaching the upcoming race in Austria, Steiner revealed that they view it partly as a testing session, allowing them to explore various strategies and solutions to improve their race pace.
“We have a lot of things to try in order to address our problems with race pace, so we have a few ideas. With two races this weekend, we have double the amount of time to experiment and attempt different approaches. While our primary objective is always to achieve the best possible result, we may have to compromise that temporarily to gain a deeper understanding of our car’s performance on race day,” Steiner explained.
Currently occupying 8th place in the Constructors’ Championship with eight points, Haas remains determined to overcome their performance challenges and elevate their competitiveness in the races ahead.
