Haas only penultimate
24.06.2019
V he has now been in the premier class for four years. After the sometimes furious start, the racing team from North Carolina is now getting to know the tough sides of business. The race in Le Castellet was a low point, explained Guenther Steiner frustrated. Kevin Magnussen could only leave the two Williams behind. Romain Grosjean was the only pilot in the field who did not see the checkered flag.
In the World Championship standings, Haas slipped to ninth place out of ten due to the zero number. Steiner no longer understands the world: “In the first race, our car was good enough for grid positions seven and eight. We were sixth in Monte Carlo. And now we are in the penultimate place. I'm completely honest: I don't know why either. ”
Haas in search of answers
The debriefing at Circuit Paul Ricard lasted significantly longer than normal. But Steiner did not get the hoped-for answers from his engineers. “That we got into this disappointing situation is one thing, but that we don't understand it is the worst part. But that doesn't make me depressed now. I see this as a new challenge. We will never give up. I told my boys that we now have to work a lot more than before. ”
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Haas is at war with the 2019 Pirelli tires.
In the first During the races of the season, the pace of the car was often right. Due to unnecessary mistakes, however, the team failed to convert the form into good results. Currently neither the pace nor the result is right. “We're really in the shit. We can't just wait for something to happen now. The only thing we can do is analyze why we are where we are. And when we know that, we can start looking for solutions as we do againcome out. ”
One reason for the downward trend is certainly to be found in the tires. The black and gold US racers were often at war with the 2019 Pirellis. But instead of somehow getting the problem under control, it seems to get worse and worse. Steiner is not trying to put all the blame on the rubber supplier from Italy.
Setup compromise because of tires
“It's a combination of different factors. We don't get the tire into the working window and therefore have to make compromises with the setup. I don't want to blame the tires alone, but the very small area in which they work means that you only focus on the tires. And then the car slows down. “
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Only Williams is in the team standings behind Haas.
Because of the tire factor, on As Haas is known to have no influence, the team boss doesn't want to be so critical of his technicians: “We're not the only ones struggling with the tires. Other teams report similar problems. But we are by far the worst off. ”
There is still a discussion behind the scenes about whether to go back to the 2018 tires with thicker treads. The old rubbers threatened to overheat more quickly, but they didn't fall out of the work window as easily. “We would agree because we have nothing to lose. But it could also be that this is not the solution to our problem at all, ”Steiner warns of too high expectations.
Turnaround in Spielberg?
Although Mercedes is on the move with such a step has most to lose, the South Tyrolean has no sympathy for the Silberpfeil team. The whole frustration becomes clear in his statements: “If it were the other way around, that is, Mercedes had the problems and only we could cope with them, one has to wonder whether Pirelli would not have acted then. Last year the tires were changed for Mercedes too. ”
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Romain Grosjean gave voluntarily. So he can change the gearbox in Spielberg without penalty.
Haas is looking forward. There is not much time left for analysis. Just one week after Le Castellet, the next race is already on in Spielberg. There is no chance of quickly developing new parts that will help solve the problem. Due to his tactical failure, Romain Grosjean can at least change the gearbox and use it to switch to the new hydraulic rear suspension, which team-mate Magnussen has been driving since Canada.
Steiner is combative: “We will try everything that is out in Austria makes sense in our view. I don't think the problem demands radical solutions. As I said: A few races ago we were sixth at the start. Now we need to find out what the difference is between the car that made it into Q3 and what we've seen now. Something must have happened! ”
