2023 would be a year to forget for Kevin Magnussen. After the highs of a maiden pole in 2022, last year was a nightmare for the Haas driver. With an average grid position of 12 and a finish position of 14, the Danish racer could only score three points for the team throughout the 22-race calendar. That being said, Haas’ latest team principal and former trackside engineering director, Ayao Komatsu, has absolved the 31-year-old for his dismal season and blamed the VF-23 instead.
While talking about the troubled 2023 car, Komatsu explained how the characteristics of the car never really suited Magnussen’s driving style. He told Motorsport.com, “He [Magnussen] is a driver who needs good stability on entry and constant management in corners.”
Motorsport Italy – After a particularly difficult 2023, in which certain characteristics of the VF-23 did not match his driving style, the new Haas Team Principal is confident that with the 2024 single-seater Magnussen can find greater confidence behind the wheel.
— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) January 21, 2024
On the contrary, Komatsu believes that the team have worked on the problems that plagued last year’s car. Hence, he is hopeful that Magnussen will have a better year in 2024 as the car will hopefully be more to his liking and driving style.
The latest era of Formula 1 has given teams a lot to think about. For example, drivers need to adapt their driving styles to the new era of cars.
With new profile Pirelli tires added to the mix at the beginning of 2022, the team will now work around the limitations of the current regulations to help prepare a car that suits Magnussen’s ‘U-style’ driving as opposed to the current ‘V-style’ being forced on him due to the low and rigid ride limitations.
2023 was the final nail in the coffin for Haas in Formula 1
As the 2023 season came to a conclusion after the Abu Dhabi GP, a grim reality started to dawn on the team. They had indeed finished last in the Constructors’ Championship. This was seen by many as the final act of their preceding years’ miseries.
After a strong debut season in 2016, the Kannapolis-based outfit started slipping down the order. Since 2019, the team has seen one controversy or the other off the track, in terms of Rich Energy or even Nikita Mazepin. Meanwhile, on the track, their performance kept degrading.
“I have huge respect for Guenther and what he’s achieved” ⭐
Ayao Komatsu on former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner pic.twitter.com/yUAoCp7rpc
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) January 17, 2024
The culmination of the 2023 season also saw Guenther Steiner lose his job as the leader of the team. After masterminding the very existence of the team on the grid, Gene Haas showed the revered Italian the exit door in acrimonious circumstances.
As it turns out, he did not even get to say his farewells to people who he had called teammates for the last eight years. A sort of anger was reflected in Steiner when he said, “I can accuse him but that doesn’t do anything because he can make his decisions, he is free to decide,” as quoted by Soymotor.com.
