Komatsu on Haas F1 transformation: "Transparency is important"

At the Canadian Grand Prix Haas celebrated its 200th grand prix by running a version of its 2016 debut livery. It was a poignant throwback to for F1’s most recent start-up team, which looked like it would never make that 10-year milestone in the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, when it almost folded.

From languishing at the back of the grid in Uralkali colours with Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher in 2021 to charting a new course under team boss Ayao Komatsu, the team has come out of those darker days in a seemingly much healthier place.

The American-owned squad, with bases in the UK, Italy and the US, finished last as recently as 2023, but became a midfield contender over 2024 and has confirmed that status with an all-new driver pairing this season, coming out of its 200th grand prix in sixth place in the constructors’ standings.

“I still remember 10 years ago like yesterday – car build, pre-season testing, going on to Melbourne,” Komatsu said. “Lots of ups and downs happened since, but now I’m really proud that we are here. 200 races, and improving the team, fighting in the midfield. It’s something I think all of us in the team should be proud of.

“The first high was really the first race in 2016, Melbourne. By the time we [completed the] car build, we felt like we’d done a season already. Then we realised that we hadn’t done anything. Then pre-season testing – we don’t remember much because we hadn’t slept much. And then going to Melbourne, we were really almost dead. And then to score the P6 with Romain [Grosjean] was amazing. And then following that with Bahrain, race two, with a P5 with Romain on the aggressive strategy. So, those are the clear highs.

“And then the low was when we started going in the wrong direction in 2019, and we couldn’t fix the car. We had a half-decent qualifying car, but we just couldn’t race, and they couldn’t solve it for the entire season. That was a low. And then COVID hit, and we really couldn’t do much. But now, we are improving again.”

Romain Grosjean, Haas VF-16

Photo by: Dirk Klynsmith / Motorsport Images

It was never plain sailing for F1’s smallest team, and it still isn’t today, as its performances are still inconsistent enough to cause dramatic swings in the results, owed as much to the team’s inherent issues with through-corner balance as to F1’s tightest-ever midfield where such flaws can cause exaggerated consequences.

Haas scored big in China and Bahrain only to have more difficult weekends in Imola and Spain, but its 2025 drivers Esteban Ocon and rookie Oliver Bearman have generally done well to snatch opportunities when they were available, combining for seven points-scoring finishes. Ocon has quietly been one of the most impressive drivers this year, appearing reborn after a painful Alpine exit. Bearman’s rookie inconsistencies are unavoidable, but he has been quick as well.

“If we had the answer, I think we would not be in that situation,” Ocon replied, when asked if he could explain Haas blowing hot and cold this year. “If you look at how tight it is through the field, in Barcelona I think one tenth would have given me four or five places.

“There are some tracks where we struggle more on, and it shows a bit more weakness on our car. We are working on that with the whole team and having a bit more consistency is definitely what we are looking for. The understeer is definitely the biggest issue on my side that we struggle with.”

Komatsu was promoted to the top job at the start of last year in place of long-time team chief Guenther Steiner and is credited with instilling a “no-BS” culture of transparent communication. The Japanese engineer was always insisting the squad, which has the lowest staff count in F1, had the right talent in-house. But retaining that workforce and being attractive enough on the job market in F1’s hyper competitive industry is not straightforward.

It’s why Komatsu feels even Haas’ long overdue new motorhome, a fresh two-storey unit which replaces the previous narrow and cramped unit, is one part of making the team a more attractive environment.

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team, Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: James Sutton / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

“Attracting good talented people, and the staff retention; it’s always tough,” Komatsu said. “That’s why everything matters, right? Some people ask me about this new motorhome. It may not look relevant directly, but in the end it does. You’ve got your company car, pension scheme, environment in the factory, environment at the trackside, what flights you pick. Everything matters because it’s such a huge competition that every aspect makes a difference.”

With the nascent Cadillac effort as an 11th team, which will be the US’s second American squad next year, that competition has only intensified. Cadillac has also set up shop in the UK’s motorsport valley in a brand-new facility, while Aston Martin has built a state-of-the-art headquarters opposite the Silverstone circuit and Racing Bulls has moved to a new unit on Red Bull’s Milton Keynes campus.

Komatsu confirmed Haas is also “looking at” upgrading its Banbury base, which works in unison with its unit on Ferrari’s Maranello campus. But shinier toys are not a silver bullet either.

“It’s not just about hardware,” he explained. “It’s about who we are as a team, how we approach as a team, how we’re working together as a team. At the end of the day, hardware is hardware.

“Your factory is a box. It’s much better to have a nice box. But even if you have a nice box, if everybody’s not working together in harmony, if you’re not creating a positive working environment, people are not going to enjoy it, so they’re going to leave.

“If we are just purely looking at hardware and cost, we cannot compete, so we’ve got to look at how we can be more attractive. In a way, that’s the same thing as how we think about getting more performance out of the team. Everybody needs to support each other, and transparency is important. That plays a big role in the staff retention because we’ve had so many people who actually left the team before but wanted to come back. Why? Just because certain things they enjoy working in our team, which is really nice.

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

“Both good and bad, we really need to understand it as a team and then make sure we continue to improve so our team environment as a whole is attractive and enjoyable.”

Meanwhile, the Gene Haas-owned team is fighting the same battle as every other midfield outfit. How far are you willing to go to win 2025’s midfield battle at the expense of 2026’s all-new regulations? Ocon has urged the team not to give up on this year too early, especially now the likes of Sauber and Aston Martin have improved, and Alpine’s car still has more potential than the team has delivered thus far.

“It’s a tricky compromise, definitely, but as it’s so tight this year, I think we have a big thing to play for on our side,” said the Frenchman. “So far, we are pushing with this year’s car and trying to improve it as much as we can.

“It’s important to take the opportunities when they come. When we had the car to perform, when we had the pace, we took the opportunities and we got big points when we scored, which was very good.

“But we need to keep that going because the Racing Bulls car is very fast. Now the Sauber is very fast as well. Everybody is improving and there are no backmarkers or people that are not in position to score at all anymore. We need to be on top of our game, focus on ourselves and keep on improving. Otherwise, we will go backwards.”

But it’s hard not to notice Haas has something of a spring in its step since Komatsu took command and the team became a regular points scorer again. Four years ago, that looked like a distant dream.