Has there been a shake up at Haas?

[8Ace]

FourWheelDrift said:

I've heard a rumour that Drive to Survive has asked Guenther to dub new Team Principle Ayao Komatsu for the new series.

That would be amazing

[RiseUp]

Guenther is suing Haas for breach of contract and merchandise sales after he was sacked.

https://speedcafe.com/ex-team-boss-guenther-steine...

[Jordie Barretts sock]

Herr Steiner is quite simply a legend. He's a breath of fresh air in F1 and calls it how it is.

I so hope his litigation is successful and also we see him back in the paddock soon.

[StevieBee]

kambites said:

Mercury00 said:

I really don't understand Gene Haas. What's the point in owning a team if you don't spend any money?

Ultimately it's about advertising value, as with all of the other teams. In Haas's case he seems to think the best advertising bang for investment buck comes from spending the bare minimum and trundling around at the back of the midfield.

Much more nuanced than just advertising. It's about access to senior buyers.

Last year I had to cover the launch of an EV training centre being opened at a local college. amongst the kit in the workshop were several impressive machines with 'Haas' logos on them. The college had received significant financial support from a large local car dealership for the centre. That and their involvement in the F1 in Schools thing led to the Principal, Department Head and some students attending the British GP a few years ago as guests of Haas and it was in the hospitality area where that deal was done.

In the scheme of things, the value wasn't that much but times that by every nation they race in and the number of other relevant buyers that pass by the Haas hospitality unit at each race - including seiner buyers from all the main car manufacturers - and you begin to understand the marketing potential that involvement in F1 has for them.

And that potential is the same at the back of the grid as at the front so the motivation to invest money to win races is not as great than it would be if Haas was a consumer brand like Red Bull.