Ayao Komatsu is currently focused on taking Haas to the next level in F1, and with two decades of experience under his belt, few are better suited for the task. However, there was a time when he had no interest in motorsports. It was only thanks to a late friend that he found his way into the field.
Initially, Komatsu wanted to become a journalist, but the presence of one Norifume Abe and the popularity of motorbikes in Japan changed his life. “I got into motorbikes because, in the late 80s, motorbikes were so popular in Japan. And then I was watching MotoGP because my neighbor was actually Norifume Abe,” said Komatsu in the Pelas Pistas podcast.
Back then, Abe was not in MotoGP, but the fact that he rode bikes competitively, piqued Komatsu’s curiosity. And with time, he found himself in love with F1. He was 16 years old and decided that from then on, he would take every step needed to pursue his newfound passion.
Komatsu moved to the UK—which is where most of the F1 teams are based out of—after finishing high school at 18. Sadly, his friend Abe, who had gotten him into racing in the first place, met with a tragic bike accident and passed away in 2007 aged 32.
Abe, who was driving a 500cc Yamaha T-Max scooter in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, crashed into a truck that was making an illegal U-turn.
Komatsu was repeatedly rejected before getting his breakthrough
Komatsu’s journey to the pinnacle of motorsports was far from easy. After he graduated from Loughborough University with a degree in engineering, he revealed how he got rejected 48 times before Lotus/Renault took notice of him.
“Once I’d done two years at Loughborough, again I wanted to find a place to do my work experience. That’s where I sent about 50 application letters, then [I got] 48 rejections, two of them gave me an interview… Luckily I got a job at Lotus Engineering,” he said in 2023.
‘I had 48 rejection letters.. You have to make a move yourself
Words of wisdom from Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu on his route into Formula One as he tells us how lots of people told him he was “never going to make it”.
Follow the link in our bio to hear our full chat with… pic.twitter.com/saAeozLbGN
— The Fast And The Curious (@fastcuriouspod) November 19, 2024
Komatsu started his career at Lotus Engineering as a performance engineer and quickly rose through the ranks, working with drivers such as Nelson Piquet Jr., Romain Grosjean, and Vitaly Petrov.
Of these, Komatsu developed a particularly close relationship with Grosjean, serving as his race engineer from 2012 to 2015. When Grosjean moved to Haas in 2016, Komatsu followed, taking on the role of trackside engineer for the American team.
It was only at the beginning of last year that Komatsu was promoted to team principal, following the departure of former team principal Guenther Steiner.
