SUMMARY
- Ayao Komatsu receives realistic target from Gene Haas for 2024.
- Haas should target to score points more consistently.
Haas has been making headlines since Guenther Steiner left the team earlier this month. Ever since Guenther Steiner left the Haas F1 team, there have been doubts about the direction the team will be taking going forward. For the past few years, the team has been struggling to get out of last place in F1.
Ayao Komatsu was named as his replacement by Gene Haas. Given that the team is in a tough position at the moment, Gene has given a rather realistic goal to Komatsu. As reported, Komatsu will be taking a different approach to the goal than Guenther did in past years.
Ayao Komatsu’s goal is clear as Gene Haas wants the team out of last place
Given that the 2024 season is just a month away, Gene Haas has given his new team principal a very simple and realistic goal. With the appointment of the new team principal, Gene is not expecting the team to get on podiums and win races. Instead, he just wants Haas out of the last position on the table.
“Gene at the moment wants to get off the back of the grid,” Komatsu says. “Obviously you saw and heard how unhappy Gene was. Of course, who’s going to be happy competing in last place? It is embarrassing, it really is embarrassing.”
Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu reveals that the goal for 2024 is to move away from the back of the grid.
“Right now, Gene wants to get out of the back of the field. Obviously, seeing and hearing how unhappy he is, no one is happy about it, really, it’s embarrassing,” he said.
— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) January 23, 2024
Ever since the beginning, the team has not been able to take the fight to the mid-field (with the exception of 2018). Since the 2020 season, Haas has finished in last place 2 times. The other 2 times, they barely got out of last place. The team’s owner wants to get out of the fight for last place and get into the mid-field battle
In order to be a part of the midfield battle, the team will have to start scoring points on a more consistent basis. A real target for the team to get in the mid-field battle would be to score at least 30-40 points in a season.
Will Nico Hulkenberg stay with Haas beyond 2024?
Nico Hulkenberg has been the better driver for Haas in 2023. Having just joined the team, he started to put in some impressive performances as he was able to deliver during qualifying. However, he did not have the pace in the car to finish in the points on a regular basis. He did manage to score 9 points while his teammate only managed 3 points.
Haas has chosen to retain their driver lineup for the 2024 season. However, things might change as the silly season approaches. There are a total of 14 empty seats in F1 for the 2025 season. This gives Hulkenberg plenty of options to choose from.
🚨 | Nico Hulkenberg is widely linked to a 2025 Sauber move.
Mutual interest was confirmed earlier this season.
Details here:https://t.co/nJareSDsPY
— formularacers (@formularacers_) December 22, 2023
For the past few weeks, there have been rumors that Nico could join Sauber to be a part of Audi Motorsport when they take over for Sauber in 2026. This move could benefit Audi as they will be looking for someone experienced. The fact that Hulkenberg is also a German Driver is a bonus for the upcoming team.
Hulkenberg could also benefit from this move as Audi is not planning to be at the back of the field. The upcoming German team will be looking to start competing for podiums and win from the 2026 season itself. Given that Nico has never scored a podium in his life, this could compel him to join Sauber in 2025.
Do you think Nico Hulkenberg will leave Haas after the 2024 season to join Sauber? Post your answers in the comments below.