The story of Haas’ unexpected revival

2024 marked Haas’ ninth season on the F1 grid and sits as one of its strongest campaigns in its young history.

It was somewhat of an unexpected turnaround from a dismal 2023 campaign. The Haas car from last year lacked any pace in the race, making points very hard to come by.

However, it entered the 2024 season in a new direction.

Out went long-standing F1 team principal Guenther Steiner, and in came Ayao Komatsu who worked in tangent with Steiner as the head of engineering during Haas’ stint in F1.

Seventh place was the end result for the US-licenced team – a mighty jump from last year’s position at the foot of the constructors’ table.

While it didn’t quite reach the peak it endured in 2018, it was undoubtedly a strong campaign for the midfield squad who will look to an even bigger gain next year.

Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen

For the second successive year, Hulkenberg and Magnussen formed Haas’ F1 driver line-up.

As was the case during the 2023 campaign, it was Hulkenberg who had the upper hand over his team-mate.

Hulkenberg out-qualified Magnussen 16-6, while he also convincingly out-paced him in race trim. The former scored 41 points to Magnussen’s 16 but each point was crucial for Haas’ rise to P7.

Truthfully, it would have been on course for sixth place if not for Alpine’s unexpected double podium in Brazil that gave it a mammoth 33 championship points in one hit.

However, it doesn’t take away from the fine job Haas did this year. Magnussen famously played an aggressive team role in the early rounds to ensure Hulkenberg grabbed points in Saudi Arabia and Miami.

His hostility would come back to bite him later in the season as Magnussen became the first driver under the super licence rules to be handed a one-race ban for accumulating 12 penalty points in 12 months.

While he was inferior to Hulkenberg throughout the campaign, he impressed at times, and even scored an impressive seventh in Mexico.

The team also had pressure on its shoulders to ensure it stayed ahead of RB who was nipping at its heels in the table.

While it may feel hard done by to miss out on P6, Haas’ season can no doubt be viewed as a positive one.

A new beginning in 2025

Haas learned early on in the year that it would be without the services of Hulkenberg in 2025 as the 37-year-old opted to join Stake ahead of Audi’s arrival the following year.

It quickly decided Oliver Bearman would fill one of its seats next year.

Bearman made his unexpected F1 debut in Saudi Arabia for Ferrari and impressed from the get-go, no doubt accelerating Haas’ decision to place him in the seat for 2025.

He got his early chance to impress in a race capacity for Haas, taking part in two races with the team in place of Magnussen who was banned in Baku and sick in Sao Paulo.

It also soon became obvious that Magnussen was heading towards the exit door following several years of service.

His departure was confirmed when Haas announced the signing of Esteban Ocon, who made his debut for the team at the post-season test.

The new line-up for Haas sparks an exciting fresh beginning for the Kannapolis-based outfit. Repeating its 2024 form would be a respectable outcome next season – any better would be a bonus.