Fan favorite Guenther Steiner has finally returned to F1, but not as a team principal on this occasion. The Italian-American is no longer leading a side after he parted ways with Haas towards the end of last season. In his new role, Steiner will work with RTL as a specialist comments person. He is also present in the paddock during the Bahrain Grand Prix this weekend and received a warm welcome from the fans.
Veteran F1 photographer Kym Illman revealed via Instagram that Netflix too made the most of their opportunity by filming Steiner. Since the 58-year-old is a fan favorite on Drive to Survive (DTS), Netflix perhaps filmed him to feature him on their next season.
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Steiner is so loved on DTS that some experts went to the extent of suggesting that Gene Haas sacked the Italian-American because he was getting too popular thanks to Netflix’s docuseries. Despite such remarks from experts, Gene maintained his stance that the reason he sacked Steiner was because of Haas’ poor performances last year. The American outfit did indeed have a disappointing season as they finished last with just 12 points.
What was more disappointing for Gene was that 2023 was the second time in the last three campaigns that his side finished rock bottom. Since Haas have indeed been disappointing, experts claiming that Gene sacked Steiner because of the latter’s increasing fame is nothing short of surprising.
Did Gene Haas sack Guenther Steiner because of his increasing popularity?
Soon after Haas decided to part ways with Guenther Steiner, 1996 F1 champion Damon Hill explained how the Italian-American’s rising fame may have not gone down too well with team owner Gene. When asked to share his thoughts about why he believes Steiner got the sack, Hill told Sky Sports (as quoted by racingnews365.com),
“He (Steiner) was getting a lot of attention, [that were potential] distractions. They were talking about this TV series they were planning and perhaps that was too much for some people. As a team principal, your primary job and focus has to be on what you do. But it wasn’t his fault that he was popular and he became a celebrity“.
Steiner did indeed make the most of his rising popularity as he also released a book, Surviving To Drive. That was not it, as the 58-year-old also accepted the invitation from CBS to appear on one of their comedy shows sometime in the future.
These are perhaps some of the distractions that Hill is referencing that may have not gone down too well with Gene. Irrespective of what Gene’s reasons were for sacking Steiner, the one thing that cannot be ignored is that since the Italian-American continues to remain a fan favorite, he is expected to receive many more such offers.
