F1 News: New Haas Team Principal Reveals "Frustrations" Leading Up To Guenther Steiner's Exit

New Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu speaks out on new appointment.

The Haas F1 Team heralds a new chapter with Ayao Komatsu's promotion to Team Principal, succeeding Guenther Steiner. Komatsu has spoken out on the recent "frustrations" from within the team ahead of his appointment. 

Key Takeaways:

• Ayao Komatsu's New Role: Elevated from Director of Engineering, Komatsu's appointment as Team Principal reflects a strategic shift, emphasising engineering prowess at the leadership's core.
• Komatsu's Formula 1 Journey: Bringing over 20 years of experience in Formula 1, Komatsu's extensive background in engineering and management positions him uniquely to lead the team's on-track and strategic success.
• Focused on Performance and Structure: Under Komatsu's leadership, the team aims to boost on-track performance through employee empowerment and optimising structural processes and efficiency.

Haas Press Image

Ayao Komatsu, the newly-appointed Team Principal of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, embarks on a pivotal role, having been an integral part of the team since its debut in 2016. With his promotion from Director of Engineering, Komatsu is poised to infuse the team's management with his extensive experience and engineering acumen.

Komatsu's career in Formula 1, spanning over two decades, commenced at British American Racing, followed by a long tenure at Renault. His journey with Haas began as the Chief Race Engineer, laying a solid foundation for his current leadership role. As Team Principal, his responsibilities are now expanded to encompass the overall strategy and on-track performance of the team.

Speaking about his new appointment, Komatsu commented:

“I’m naturally very excited to have the opportunity to be Team Principal at MoneyGram Haas F1 Team.

“Having been with the team since its track-debut back in 2016 I’m obviously passionately invested in its success in Formula 1. I’m looking forward to leading our program and the various competitive operations internally to ensure we can build a structure that produces improved on-track performances.

“We are a performance-based business. We obviously haven’t been competitive enough recently which has been a source of frustration for us all. We have amazing support from Gene and our various partners, and we want to mirror their enthusiasm with an improved on-track product. We have a great team of people across Kannapolis, Banbury and Maranello and together I know we can achieve the kind of results we’re capable of.”