The Haas team announced the technical partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing this Thursday. But this has no impact on the deal with engine partner Ferrari, emphasizes team boss Ayao Komatsu.
It’s the “perfect combination,” explained Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu at the press conference on the US racing team’s technical partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing, which will already be visible in Austin: the logo of Toyota’s motorsport department will be part of the formula at the next race weekend 1 is emblazoned on the racing cars of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin.
The details of the partnership have not yet been announced, but one benefit that will come from the collaboration is the help Toyota will provide in setting up a simulator at the Formula 1 factory in Banbury. The Japanese will also provide the resources for a test program with the 2023 car, which will allow Toyota to give its own young drivers some kilometers of Formula 1 experience through private tests.
«We are the smallest team on the starting grid and we certainly lack the resources and the necessary hardware capacity to understand certain things. But we want to become more competitive in the midfield, so we were looking for a partner who could provide us with exactly that. And with Toyota Gazoo Racing we have found this partner. They have a great facility in Cologne that we can also use,” says Komatsu happily.
“Formula 1 is a high-tech sport, but what really counts is the people, the staff,” emphasizes the engineer. “We both want to train and develop our staff in a Formula 1 environment so that we mutually benefit. So there are a lot of, let’s say, coherent goals in each other’s organizations. That was the key to the decision to enter into this technical partnership.”
Both sides emphasize that there are no plans to develop their own Formula 1 engine. “To make one thing clear: This is not about replacing Ferrari. The partnership between Haas and Ferrari is the basis, and it will remain that way. The Toyota partnership is intended to further strengthen this fundamental partnership with Ferrari,” explains Komatsu.
And the Japanese enthuses: “What we have with Ferrari and what we get from them is great. That’s really the foundation. And the areas where Toyota can help us lie outside of that foundation. Here, too, we were of course completely transparent with Ferrari management about this discussion from the start. “So we both have a clear understanding of what involvement we have with TGR in what area and how we need to protect each company’s intellectual property rights.”
Komatsu also confirms that the Haas team will continue to work in Ferrari’s wind tunnel and that design work will continue to be carried out in Italy. «Of course we will still need the design office in Maranello, because we will continue to source the transmission and suspension from Ferrari. So it makes sense that our design department is in Maranello. And we will continue to use the wind tunnel there so that our engineers can continue to work there in the future.”
“But we will, for example, start designing more carbon parts ourselves, and we will also start some testing and simulator work. We still have to decide where exactly we will do this, whether in Maranello or in Great Britain. But I would like to emphasize once again that it is not about replacing what we have with Ferrari,” adds the team boss.
And with regard to the chassis manufacturer Dallara, Komatsu adds: “Dallara is an important partner for us. They accompanied us from day one and built our chassis. So this is another important partnership. In due course we will discuss what we will continue to do with Dallara and what we will do with Toyota, but it is not about replacing one partner.”
World Championship standings (after 18 of 24 Grands Prix and 3 of 6 Sprints)
driver
01. Verstappen 331 points
02. Norris 279
03. Leclerc 245
04. Plates 237
05. Sainz 190
06. Hamilton 174
07. Russell 155
08. Pérez 144
09. Alonso 62
10. Hulkenberg 24
11. Stroll 24
12. Tsunoda 22
13. Albon 12
14. Ricciardo 12
15. Gasly 8
16. Oliver Bearman (GB) 7
17. Magnussen 6
18. Ocon 5
19. Colapinto 4
20. Zhou 0
21. Sargeant (USA) 0
22. Bottas 0
Constructors’ Cup
01. McLaren 516 points
02. Red Bull Racing 475
03. Ferrari 441
04. Mercedes 329
05. Aston Martin 86
06. Racing Bulls 34
07. Haas 31
09. Williams 16
08. Alpine 13
10. Sauber 0
