Steiner out of Haas as Komatsu takes F1 team principal role

The shock news was announced by the US-owned outfit on Wednesday in the wake of a poor 2023 season that saw it finish 10th and last in the constructors’ World Championship.

Steiner’s contract was up for renewal at the end of the year, and team owner Gene Haas opted not to extend it.

As previously reported, former technical director Simone Resta has also left the team in a decision that predates Steiner’s departure.

Steiner, who formulated the plan for an F1 team using Ferrari technology and then sourced the funding from machine tools manufacturer Haas with which to start it, appears to have paid the price for last year’s poor performance.

It’s been no secret that at times there has been tension between Steiner and Haas, and there were differences in opinion in the camp about the technical direction to take, with the split of old and new aero packages seen in the last two races of 2023 an obvious public sign of the diverging views.

In essence, Steiner was asking for more investment in an effort to keep up with rivals who are spending heavily on updated factory infrastructure, while Haas wanted to focus on making more efficient use of the resources that his team already has at its disposal.

Significantly the slide to 10th place represents a big hit to the team’s share of the F1 prize fund, and it means that Haas has to commit to making a bigger contribution to the 2024 running budget than he might have expected to, in effect leaving less margin for investment in the facilities.

In stark contrast, the likes of Williams, Sauber and AlphaTauri have taken advantage of the extra capex allowance allowed by the FIA and committed to extra spending during the build-up to the 2026 regulation changes.

The team says that Komatsu will be responsible for the team’s strategy and on-track performance. In a statement, it noted that he will have “a brief to maximise the team’s potential through employee empowerment and structural process and efficiency.”

Komatsu will be supported on the organisational and commercial side by a yet-to-be-named new chief operating officer, who will focus on non-racing matters and probably be based at the UK facility in Banbury.

Owner Haas has made it clear that his focus is on improving the performance of the team.

“I’d like to start by extending my thanks to Guenther Steiner for all his hard…