Cosa Haas deve fare per migliorarsi ancora.

(Motorsport-Total.com) – Four points in three races: Haas has made a good start to the 2024 Formula 1 season. The US team had actually expected to be at the bottom of the field in the early races once again. However, this is not the case: Haas is keeping up with the midfield and has even scored points with both cars recently.

What is still missing for Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen to be constant top-10 contenders? According to Hülkenberg, Haas needs to improve in “high and medium speed corners”. “Everything that is flowing and quite fast” is still not ideal for the Haas VF-24 and is “still the biggest difference” compared to the top cars, according to Hülkenberg.

The Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka this weekend (follow all sessions in the Formula 1 live ticker here!) is expected to provide Haas with more insights, as Suzuka International Racing Course is “the most demanding track we have raced on so far”.

Hülkenberg therefore expects an “interesting and challenging weekend” in Japan and sees Suzuka as a “test” for Haas to learn more about the strengths and weaknesses of the car. “And then we will definitely move in a direction,” says Hülkenberg.

He can already state that Haas is now “definitely in a different environment” compared to last year, because the team is technically better positioned. “The work of the aerodynamicists over the winter now enables us to be in a much better position – especially on Sundays,” explains the German.

Why Haas has a chance in the race in 2024

Because Haas has succeeded with the VF-24 in simplifying the aerodynamics. In addition, the team has “desensitized the car,” according to Hülkenberg. In other words, the current Haas race car is more forgiving than its predecessor and less sharp in its setup. Hülkenberg: “That seems very important and crucial at the moment.”

Magnussen also sees it this way, attributing a “good and positive atmosphere” to Haas before the fourth race weekend of the 2024 Formula 1 season. “Being able to fight on Sundays changes everything for us. That wasn’t possible last year and was incredibly frustrating.”

Therefore, the year 2024 feels like a “kind of restart,” says Magnussen. “Ultimately, it’s because of the car that behaves differently. As a driver, you manage to keep the tires alive. You can fight over the entire race distance. We simply have a chance on Sundays.”

Magnussen: Current form is not enough

But Haas cannot rest on this improvement, according to Magnussen: “We need more performance if we want to maintain our current position in the championship. That’s what we’re working on. Hopefully, when we bring the updates to the car, they will work. But so far, things are going well and the direction of development looks good as well.”

Because the major drawback of the recent past no longer exists: In 2023, Haas “took a big step down” in the race and experienced “an uncontrolled ride in the wrong direction” due to high tire wear, as Hülkenberg describes it.

“Now I feel that we are pretty much on par with all the other midfield teams, which of course gives us the opportunity to race and take advantage of opportunities.”

What happened to Haas’ qualifying performance?

It seems that Haas is no longer in top form in qualifying: in 2023, the team was much closer to the top 10 in the first three races of the season than this year with an improved car over the distance.

Why is that? Hülkenberg thinks: “The field is very close together and the gaps are very small. So I don’t think the pace over one lap is necessarily gone, but it has been a bit more difficult so far.” He still prefers the 2024 season.

Why did Haas downplay its prospects before the start of the season?

According to Magnussen, it was simply the “honest self-assessment” of his team. “Because last year, the development went back and forth between the then and the current car.”

“There was actually no reason to believe that we would continue to be at the front in 2024. We thought we had improved, but we also thought the competition had improved even more,” says Magnussen.

Hülkenberg adds: “Where we left off last year, you couldn’t expect much. I think we have surprised ourselves with what we have found and with the package we have put together. And at the moment, we are on the level of the other midfield teams. I think in terms of pure pace, it is still very close between us, Sauber, and Williams.”

Overall, Haas “doesn’t look bad in terms of pace”. And that is the decisive change compared to last year.