‘This didn’t seem to work anymore’
Formula 1 may have lost one of its most high-profile people in recent years, as the Haas team is sending away team boss Günther Steiner. Owner Gene Haas no longer saw it this way.
There will probably be quite a few Formula 1 fans disappointed that a striking figure like Günther Steiner may disappear from the picture, but Haas boss Gene Haas does not seem particularly sad about it. He explains Steiner’s departure via the official Formula 1 website. The American says he is disappointed in the team’s performance and is fed up with only finishing at the back. “We have completed more than 160 races in eight years and have never finished on the podium. In recent years we have always finished ninth or tenth (in the constructors’ championship; ed.). I am not saying that it is all up to Günther, but I thought it was a good time to take a different course.”
This different course is being taken with the Japanese Ayao Komatsu at the helm. The 47-year-old Komatsu has been associated with Haas F1 for years, where he was primarily responsible for trackside operations until his promotion to team boss. In 2016, Komatsu joined the team with Romain Grosjean; previously he was Grosjean’s race engineer at Lotus. It is not yet known whether Günther Steiner will return to Formula 1 with another team or whether he will look for a new job outside F1.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl