ATS, F1 constructor

After four podium-less seasons during which Haas scored just 52 points in total, team principal Guenther Steiner and technical director Simone Resta left the squad last winter.The former was replaced by ex-trackside engineering director Komatsu while the latter's position was taken over by Andrea de Zordo, who used to be the outfit's chief engineer.These decisions were made amid team founder and ...

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In a media call last week, Steiner suggested that prior to his departure, the wind tunnel numbers already suggested that the VF-24 would be competitive and that the team was "wrong" to take a low-key approach when predicting its potential form.The car has already proved capable of making Q3 and Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen have made the points three times between them, putting the team in ...

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Komatsu admitted that the team had called Magnussen into the pits at the wrong time, losing the Dane two places in the process.Like in Saudi Arabia, Haas split the strategies of the two drivers, with Nico Hulkenberg running a long opening stint on the hard tyre before pitting for mediums under the VSC.With fresher tyres, Hulkenberg came up behind Magnussen who, despite his obvious frustration ...

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The American team went through a demoralising 2023 campaign in which Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen couldn't convert reasonable one-lap pace into race results, due to its car eating through the Pirelli tyres on most circuits.Haas never found a solution to raise its performance level and after finishing bottom of the constructors' championship, a result which led to Guenther Steiner's exit as ...

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The reigning champion had taken a back seat during the opening two stages of qualifying but, when it came down to Q3, he set a demanding benchmark of 1m29.421s - and then beat his own effort amid the final runs to settle on a 1m29.179s.This was slower than Leclerc's time from Q2, but the Monegasque was unable to replicate that effort in the final runs of the Q3 session, and could only manage a ...

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Outspoken and popular founding Haas team principal Guenther Steiner left the squad over the winter as his contract came to an end.Steiner also had a disagreement with owner Gene Haas that related to the technical structure and level of investment required to climb the constructors’ standings, after the American squad finished last in 2023.Former BAR and Renault engineer Komatsu, the team’s ...

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Norris announced last week that he had committed his long-term future to McLaren, with a new contract that takes him beyond the 2026 season.Speaking about the reasons for sticking to his current squad, the British driver explained that he felt there was no better place for him to achieve his target of the world title.Although he has yet to deliver a victory for McLaren, his team boss has no doubts ...

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In the wake of a challenging 2023 season, where Haas finished bottom of the constructors' championship, it parted ways with its long-serving boss Guenther Steiner over the winter. His replacement Komatsu is currently undertaking a review of the Banbury-based team's operations to turn things around to get it further up the grid. And while Gene Haas's recent outspoken remarks about the performance ...

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Kevin Magnussen struggled at times throughout last season to get as much out of the team’s 2023 challenger as team-mate Nico Hulkenberg because its characteristics did not suit his style. His preference to carry speed through a corner, which demands a car handles well the transition from braking on the approach and turn-in, was not something that the Haas VF-23 was good at.Instead, it lost ...

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Instead, the Japanese says his focus is on making the right changes that he thinks are needed behind the scenes to help move the American-owned squad off the bottom of the grid. In a wide-ranging first interview with selected media reflecting on his appointment, Komatsu acknowledged that Steiner’s larger-than-life character was something that could never be followed. “Of course. I’m not ...

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The shock news was announced by the US-owned outfit on Wednesday in the wake of a poor 2023 season that saw it finish 10th and last in the constructors’ World Championship.Steiner's contract was up for renewal at the end of the year, and team owner Gene Haas opted not to extend it.As previously reported, former technical director Simone Resta has also left the team in a decision that predates ...

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In winning the 2023 world championship, Verstappen joined a list of 10 other drivers to have won more than two titles. If Red Bull can maintain its position at the head of the pecking order until the current ruleset ends in 2026, Verstappen would theoretically have five titles – rarefied status in the elite world champions’ club, as only Juan Manuel Fangio, Lewis Hamilton and Michael ...

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This was despite a series of late-race passes and a penalty for Sergio Perez meaning Leclerc actually gifted him second on the road on the last lap in a failed attempt to extend the Mexican driver's gap to Russell behind.Several drivers, including Verstappen, also face a post-race stewards' investigation regarding possible pitstop infringements related to eyewear worn by their mechanics.At the ...

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Despite a first sector that was over two tenths slower than the best efforts from the Red Bulls, Norris found time over the rest of the lap to clinch pole position for Saturday's shortened race - albeit with some evident bemusement after feeling that his lap was not particularly special.McLaren put both cars onto the track first in the SQ3 session, with Oscar Piastri opening the final stage with a ...

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The win gave Verstappen his 50th F1 career victory in a race where he struggled with brake problems and Ferrari's challenge disappeared early.Norris got a better start than Ferrari's polesitter Charles Leclerc and was quickly alongside the Ferrari before heading to the Turn 1 apex to make certain of the lead.Behind, Hamilton tried to defend against Carlos Sainz but was jumped when the Spaniard ...

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At the start, Verstappen and Leclerc moved away seemingly in unison, but the Ferrari gained during the launch’s second phase. As Leclerc tried to move alongside the Red Bull, Verstappen edged his rival right across the track and close to the grass by the pitlane exit.  That left Leclerc pinched very tightly on the inside of the uphill left-hand hairpin and, with Hamilton swinging around on the ...

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Sargeant was one of several drivers suffering from severe dehydration and heatstroke during what has been described as the most physically demanding race in recent times.The American rookie was initially keen to push through, but after consulting with his team he opted to retire on lap 42.Among others, Sargeant was checked and released by F1's medical staff, with his condition compounded by ...

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Verstappen’s lead was challenged on the run to the first corner by the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri but he clung on to his advantage and dominated from there.Piastri got ahead of Norris when he benefited from a virtual safety car while in the pits, but Norris was faster in the middle stages of the race, so McLaren swapped their positions.Mercedes’ George Russell looked to be a ...

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The Milton Keynes outfit has won the first 13 races of the 2023 season, and Verstappen recorded his ninth consecutive victory in his home race at Zandvoort last weekend.The Dutchman and his team are set to add two more world championship titles to Newey’s personal total, which also includes successes gained with Williams and McLaren.Newey believes that as he heads towards his third title ...

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The Dutchman punched in a 1m10.567s lap, which remained untouchable in the final moments of Q3 to ensure a third consecutive pole at his local race to the delight of his fans.Although the McLarens had headed the order prior to the Charles Leclerc-enforced red flag towards the end of qualifying, Verstappen made no bones of setting himself up for an all-or-nothing flyer at the end and set a ...

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When the lights went out, polesitter Leclerc swung across Perez's bows to maintain the lead at La Source, where Carlos Sainz, starting fourth, locked up and then collided with Oscar Piastri running just behind from fifth on the grid on the inside.The McLaren was pinched against the inside wall, damaging its suspension and ripping the side of the Ferrari's right-side sidepod, with Piastri slowing ...

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Verstappen had entered the qualifying session at Spa having had a fifth gearbox of the season fitted, which triggers a five-place grid penalty for the GP but does not impact his starting spot for Saturday's sprint race.The Dutchman had trailed Leclerc after the first runs in Q3, having only just scraped through in 10th in Q2 following the switch from wet to dry tyres in that session and as he ...

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The FIA is currently working through the submissions for the 2022 season that have been handed to it by teams and has increased its analysis of competitor spending in a bid to stamp out any clever workarounds.As reported by Motorsport.com last month, this has also included a deep dive into team's non-F1 activities to make sure that ideas are not being fed back to the grand prix operation outside ...

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Motorsport.com revealed recently how motor racing's governing body has been ramping up its investigations into team's cost cap submissions.
FIA representatives have been visiting teams to check on their cost cap figures, and some squads have been handed questionnaires demanding more than 100 answers as clarification is sought over their spending.
The FIA has also begun checks into the use by ...

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Race control was tasked with reviewing more than 1200 instances of cars having reportedly exceeded track limits - all of which came through Turns 9 and 10 at the Red Bull Ring - by running over the painted white lines that denote the edge of the circuit with all four tyres.
For a 71-lap race, that works out as an average of 17 potential incidents per tour or 60 possible infringements for each ...

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