Haas F1 Team

Haas Formula LLC,[7] competing as Haas F1 Team,[3][8][9][10] is an American licensed Formula One racing team established by NASCAR Cup Series team co-owner Gene Haas in April 2014. The team originally intended to make its debut at the start of the 2015 season [9][11] but later elected to postpone their entry until the 2016 season.[12] The current team principal for the Haas F1 team is Guenther Steiner.

Haas-Ferrari

Full name	Haas F1 Team[1]
Base	Kannapolis, North Carolina, United States (Main)[2] Banbury, England, UK (European)
Team principal(s)	Gene Haas (Team Owner & Chairman) Joe Custer (COO) Guenther Steiner (Team Principal)
Technical director(s)	Rob Taylor (Chief Designer) Ben Agathangelou (Chief Aerodynamicist)
Founder(s)	Gene Haas[3]
Website	www.haasf1team.com
2021 Formula One World Championship
Race drivers	09. Nikita Mazepin[4] 47. Mick Schumacher[5]
Engine	Ferrari[6]
Tyres	Pirelli
Formula One World Championship career
First entry	2016 Australian Grand Prix
Last entry	2020 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Races entered	100
Engines	Ferrari
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0
Race victories	0
Podiums	0
Points	200
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	2
2020 position	9th (3 pts)

The team is headquartered in Kannapolis, North Carolina, United States – 31 mi (50 km) from Charlotte[2] – alongside sister team and NASCAR entrant Stewart-Haas Racing, though the two teams are separate entities. The team also established a second forward base in Banbury, England, for the purpose of turning cars around between races during the European part of the calendar.[3]

History

The team's American headquarters in Kannapolis, North Carolina

Preparations

Haas was the first American constructor to submit an F1 entry after the failed US F1 project in 2010,[13] and it is the first American constructor to compete since the unrelated Haas Lola outfit raced in the 1985 and 1986 seasons. The Haas Lola team was owned by former McLaren boss Teddy Mayer and Carl Haas, who is not related to Gene Haas.

Following the collapse of Marussia F1 during the 2014 season and the auctioning of their assets, Haas purchased the team's Banbury headquarters to serve as a forward base for their operations.[14]

Unrestricted by testing regulations until the time the team actually entered Formula One, Haas shook its new car down in December 2015 ahead of official pre-season testing at Barcelona in early 2016.[15] Haas approached Italian manufacturer Dallara to build their chassis, with a power unit supplied by Ferrari.[3][16] Former Jaguar and Red Bull Racing technical director Guenther Steiner is the team principal.[3] Haas confirmed its new car had passed the mandatory FIA crash tests in January 2016.[17]

Relationship with Ferrari

Haas's approach of establishing a far-reaching partnership with Ferrari was met with a mixed response from the paddock. The constructor was applauded for pioneering a low-cost model that would allow new teams to enter the sport and be competitive, which had been of concern to the sport for some years.[18] Conversely, Haas's approach was criticized by smaller, privateer teams who had invested in their own infrastructure and expressed concerns about the close relationship between manufacturers and satellite constructors handing more political power to the sport's larger constructors.[19]

In 2018 the constructor again came under fire from competitors after arriving at winter testing with a car that strongly resembled the Ferrari SF70H, Ferrari's 2017 car. Competitors, McLaren and Force India both criticized the partnership between Ferrari and Haas. While no official grievance has been filled with the FIA, McLaren boss Zak Brown has questioned the relationship.[20]

During 2021 rule discussions in April 2019, concerns over Haas F1's B-team approach were presented by Renault and McLaren. Director of Motorsports, Ross Brawn said that he wants to protect and enhance the model for the foreseeable future as it allows teams with smaller budgets to enter the sport.[21]

2016 season

Romain Grosjean driving for Haas at the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix.

Romain Grosjean and Esteban Gutiérrez drove for the team in 2016.[22][23] In the team's debut at the opening Australian Grand Prix, Grosjean finished 6th, scoring eight points for the team, which became the first American constructor to win points in its first F1 race and the first constructor overall since Toyota Racing in 2002 to record points in its debut.[24] At the same race his teammate, Esteban Gutiérrez crashed out in an incident which destroyed former world champion Fernando Alonso's McLaren and caused the race to be temporarily red-flagged.[25] Another impressive race followed in Bahrain, where Grosjean finished 5th. Although the rest of the season the team fell off the pace, only scoring points on three more occasions. It was Grosjean who picked up all 29 points en route to 8th in the Constructors' Championship.

2017 season

Kevin Magnussen driving for Haas at the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix.

On November 11, 2016, the team announced that Kevin Magnussen would drive alongside Grosjean in 2017, replacing Gutiérrez.

Kevin Magnussen replaced Gutiérrez for the 2017 season.[26] In the first race of the season, the team scored its best-ever qualifying effort with Grosjean piloting the VF-17 to 6th place. However, in the race, one of the issues that was hampering the performance of Kevin Magnussen throughout the weekend struck again, forcing both cars to retire from the race.[27][28] The second race weekend proved better for the team as Kevin Magnussen finished 8th, scoring his first points since his 10th-place finish in the 2016 Singapore Grand Prix, and Haas's first points since the 2016 United States Grand Prix, where Grosjean finished 10th.[29][30]

The team's success would continue in 2017 as Haas would also go on to get their first double points finish in Monaco where Grosjean finished eighth and Magnussen tenth. The team finished 8th place in the constructors' title for the 2nd straight year after being surpassed by the Renault Sport Formula One Team in the final races.[31]

2018 season

Grosjean driving the VF-18 at the Austrian Grand Prix

In February 2018, Haas unveiled their new car, the VF-18, although some competitors called for an investigation due to its resemblance to the previous year's Ferrari, the SF70H.[20][32] Following a strong showing during winter testing, Haas again showed up in Australia with a competitive car; scoring the team's best-ever starting grid positions with Magnussen starting 5th and Grosjean 6th, respectively.[33] During the Grand Prix, they were running in 4th and 5th positions which would have given them their best ever result and half of their 2017 points tally, but both cars retired one lap after their respective pit stops. They would eventually match this 4th and 5th-place result in Austria, where they also surpassed their 2017 points total after only nine races. At the Singapore Grand Prix, Magnussen scored Haas' first-ever fastest lap.[34] 2018 was their best season to date, finishing fifth in the Constructors' Championship, one point short of doubling their previous year's performance.

2019 season

Magnussen driving the VF-19 at the Canadian Grand Prix.

The team took on Rich Energy as a title sponsor for 2019. This was part of the activation of a multi-year title sponsorship deal with Rich Energy, a British energy drink company which was previously linked to purchasing Force India.[35] The team also retained their 2018 driver line up for 2019 consisting of Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen for the third consecutive year.[36] Haas' challenger for the 2019 season was the VF-19.

The VF-19 often showed impressive pace during qualifying but struggled during the race. At the opening race in Australia, Magnussen finished 6th in what would eventually turn out to be the team's best result of the season. The team's qualifying pace was evident in Austria, where Magnussen recorded the 5th-fastest time, but went on to finish the race in 19th with Grosjean 16th. Four days before the British Grand Prix, in July, the Rich Energy Twitter account announced that the sponsorship deal had been terminated, citing poor performance.[37] This was later denied by both the team and Rich Energy's shareholders and it transpired that the tweet was the result of a "rogue" individual.[38] For the British Grand Prix the team elected to reverse the upgrades placed on Grosjean's car, using the same specification run in Australia, in order to determine the causes of the car's poor race pace. However, both drivers collided into each other on the first lap, causing a double retirement for the team.[39] The German Grand Prix provided the team's best-combined result of the season, being classified 7th and 8th after post-race penalties for other drivers.

Title sponsor Rich Energy faced numerous legal issues during the year, including being found to have plagiarized the logo of bicycle manufacturer Whyte Bikes.[40] In September, a day after the Italian Grand Prix, Rich Energy announced the termination of the deal with Haas F1 team with immediate effect. The Haas statement read, "While enjoying substantial brand recognition through its title partnership of Haas F1 Team in 2019, a corporate restructuring process at Rich Energy will see the need for a revised global strategy. Subsequently, Haas F1 Team and Rich Energy concluded a termination of the existing partnership was the best way forward for both parties. Haas F1 Team would like to express its thanks and best wishes to the stakeholders at Rich Energy."[41] The team had finished the Italian Grand Prix at Monza with no points with Romain Grosjean finishing only 16th and Kevin Magnussen retiring.

Haas finished the season in 9th place in the constructors' championship with 28 points, the team's worst finish since their founding in 2016.

2020 season

Haas kept an unchanged lineup of Grosjean and Magnussen as their drivers for the 2020 season.[42]

In the 2020 Formula One World Championship, Haas scored 3 points, with Magnussen finishing 9th in Hungary, but receiving a time penalty that would drop him to 10th, and Grosjean finishing 9th in the Eifel Grand Prix. They would not score again. [43][44]

On the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Grosjean collided with AlphaTauri driver Daniil Kvyat and crashed through the barriers between turns 3 and 4. The impact resulted in the car splitting in two, and bursting into flames. Grosjean escaped major injury, suffering burns on his hands and was hospitalised after the race. He remarked that the halo head protection device likely saved his life. The crash ruled him out of the following week's Sakhir Grand Prix, and he was replaced by Haas reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi.

2021 season

Both Magnussen and Grosjean left Haas at the end of the 2020 Championship.[45] They are due to be replaced by Russian Nikita Mazepin,[4] and 2020 Formula 2 Championship winner Mick Schumacher,[46] son of seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher.

Complete Formula One results

(key)

Year	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	Points	WCC
2016	VF-16	Ferrari 061 1.6 V6 t	P		AUS	BHR	CHN	RUS	ESP	MON	CAN	EUR	AUT	GBR	HUN	GER	BEL	ITA	SIN	MAL	JPN	USA	MEX	BRA	ABU			29	8th
				Romain Grosjean	6	5	19	8	Ret	13	14	13	7	Ret	14	13	13	11	DNS	Ret	11	10	20	DNS	11
				Esteban Gutiérrez	Ret	Ret	14	17	11	11	13	16	11	16	13	11	12	13	11	Ret	20	Ret	19	Ret	12
2017	VF-17	Ferrari 062 1.6 V6 t	P		AUS	CHN	BHR	RUS	ESP	MON	CAN	AZE	AUT	GBR	HUN	BEL	ITA	SIN	MAL	JPN	USA	MEX	BRA	ABU				47	8th
				Romain Grosjean	Ret	11	8	Ret	10	8	10	13	6	13	Ret	7	15	9	13	9	14	15	15	11
				Kevin Magnussen	Ret	8	Ret	13	14	10	12	7	Ret	12	13	15	11	Ret	12	8	16	8	Ret	13
2018	VF-18	Ferrari 062 EVO 1.6 V6 t	P		AUS	BHR	CHN	AZE	ESP	MON	CAN	FRA	AUT	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	SIN	RUS	JPN	USA	MEX	BRA	ABU			93	5th
				Romain Grosjean	Ret	13	17	Ret	Ret	15	12	11	4	Ret	6	10	7	DSQ	15	11	8	Ret	16	8	9
				Kevin Magnussen	Ret	5	10	13	6	13	13	6	5	9	11	7	8	16	18^F	8	Ret	DSQ	15	9	10
2019	VF-19	Ferrari 064 1.6 V6 t	P		AUS	BHR	CHN	AZE	ESP	MON	CAN	FRA	AUT	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	SIN	RUS	JPN	MEX	USA	BRA	ABU			28	9th
				Romain Grosjean	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	10	10	14	Ret	16	Ret	7	Ret	13	16	11	Ret	13	17	15	13	15
				Kevin Magnussen	6	13	13	13	7	14	17	17	19	Ret	8	13	12	Ret	17^F	9	15	15	18^†	11	14
2020	VF-20	Ferrari 065 1.6 V6 t	P		AUT	STY	HUN	GBR	70A	ESP	BEL	ITA	TUS	RUS	EIF	POR	EMI	TUR	BHR	SKH	ABU							3	9th
				Romain Grosjean	Ret	13	16	16	16	19	15	12	12	17	9	17	14	Ret	Ret
				Pietro Fittipaldi																17	19
				Kevin Magnussen	Ret	12	10	Ret	Ret	15	17	Ret	Ret	12	13	16	Ret	17	17	15	18
2021	TBA	Ferrari 1.6 V6 t	P		BHR	EMI	TBA	ESP	MON	AZE	CAN	FRA	AUT	GBR	HUN	BEL	NED	ITA	RUS	SIN	JPN	USA	MXC	SAP	AUS	SAU	ABU	–	–
				Nikita Mazepin
				Mick Schumacher
Source:[47]

Notes

• ^† – The driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified, as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

References

1. Noble, Jonathan (September 2, 2014). "Gene Haas changes the name of his new Formula 1 team". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
2. Doolittle, Dave (April 13, 2014). "Kurt Busch: NASCAR team co-owner Gene Haas 'serious' about F1 team". Austin American-Statesman. Cox Media Group, Inc. Archived from the original on April 17, 2014. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
3. Anderson, Ben (April 14, 2014). "Gene Haas eyes Dallara chassis tie-up for F1 entry". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publication. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
4. "Haas sign F2 racer Nikita Mazepin for 2021 on multi-year deal". Liberty Media. December 1, 2020.
5. "Mick Schumacher to race for Haas in 2021 as famous surname returns to F1 grid". Liberty Media. December 2, 2020.
6. Grandprix.com. "Haas to stick with Ferrari amid engine crisis". www.grandprix.com. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
7. "Haas Formula LLC". opencorporates.com. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
8. Gluck, Jeff (April 14, 2015). "Gene Haas: No reason U.S.-based Formula One team can't succeed". USA Today. Concord, North Carolina. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
9. "FIA WMSC statement, Marrakech, 11 April 2014". FIA.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. April 11, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
10. Rencken, Dieter; Noble, Jonathan (January 16, 2014). "NASCAR team boss Gene Haas plans new Formula 1 squad for 2015". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
11. Noble, Jonathan (April 6, 2014). "Formula 1 could have two new teams in 2015 – Bernie Ecclestone". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved April 7, 2014. They will be accepted," he said about the Haas entry. "We have also accepted another team as well.
12. "Haas confirms debut will be in 2016". ESPN.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. June 4, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2014.
13. Beer, Matt (June 24, 2010). "FIA fines and disqualifies US F1". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
14. "Haas F1 on schedule for 2016 debut after key acquisitions". BBC Sport. BBC. March 10, 2015. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
15. Medland, Chris (February 3, 2015). "Haas plans December shakedown". F1i. Chris Medland. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
16. "Ferrari power unit for Haas F1 Team". Ferrari. Ferrari. September 3, 2014.
17. Medland, Chris (January 8, 2016). "Haas passes FIA crash tests with first car". F1i. Chris Medland. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
18. "Haas F1's controversial approach divides F1 opinion". F1 news and updates on web. April 11, 2016. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
19. "Haas F1 approach "questionable" – Fernley". Motorsport.com. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
20. Straw, Edd; Mitchell, Scott (March 28, 2018). "Force India, McLaren want 'magic' Haas-Ferrari F1 car investigated". Autosport.com. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
21. "Brawn Looking to Preserve 'Interesting' Haas Model in bid to Attract New Entrants". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. April 6, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
22. Parkes, Ian (September 29, 2015). "Haas Formula 1 team announces Romain Grosjean as first driver". Autosport. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
23. Elizalde, Pablo (October 31, 2015). "Haas F1 announces Gutierrez for 2016". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network, LLC. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
24. Whisenant, David (March 20, 2016). "Kannapolis based Haas F1 teams makes history in Australia". WBTV. Kannapolis, North Carolina: Raycom Media. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
25. Lines, Chris (March 20, 2016). "Alonso flips car after dramatic collision at Australian GP". Associated Press. Melbourne: AP News. Associated Press. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
26. "Haas F1 Team Secures 2017 Driver Lineup by Signing Kevin Magnussen to Join Romain Grosjean". Haas F1 Team. November 11, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
27. "Haas F1 suffers through miserable F1 Australian Grand Prix". Autoweek. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
28. "Winning Formula – Guenther Steiner & The Haas F1 Project | Mobil 1 The Grid". Mobil 1 The Grid. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
29. "2016 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix – Race Result". Formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Ltd. October 23, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
30. "2016 Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix – Race Result". Formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Ltd. September 18, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
31. "Results". Formula1.com. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
32. Bonkowski, Jerry (February 14, 2018). "Haas F1 team unveils 2018 Formula One livery, the third-generation VF-18". NBC Sports. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
33. "Results". Formula1.com. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
34. "Haas - Fastest laps". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
35. "Haas sign Rich Energy deal". Sky Sports. Retrieved October 26, 2018.
36. "F1 2019 calendar: Race schedule, driver line-ups and Test dates". Sky Sports. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
37. "Rich Energy says Haas F1 deal terminated, citing "poor performance"". Autosport.
38. Khorounzhiy, Valentin. "Rich Energy shareholders say "rogue" individual behind Haas F1 tweet". Autosport.com.
39. "Haas continues new vs old car spec experiment for German Grand Prix". motorsport.tech. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
40. The High Court, London, UK
41. "Haas part ways with title sponsors". Formula1. September 9, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
42. Khorounzhiy, Valentin (September 19, 2019). "Grosjean keeps Haas F1 seat for 2020". motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
43. "Kevin Magnussen praises 'amazing call' from Haas that helped him to first point of 2020". formula1.com. July 19, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
44. van Osten, Phillip (October 12, 2020). "Grosjean happy with maiden points and no 'broken finger'". F1i.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
45. "Grosjean and Magnussen announce they are to leave Haas at the end of 2020". Formula1.com. October 22, 2020. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
46. "Mick Schumacher confirmed at Haas for 2021". Formula One. December 2, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
47. "Haas – Grands Prix started". StatsF1. Retrieved February 14, 2020.

External links

• Official website