In January 2024, Guenther Steiner got sacked from his role as Haas team principal. Since then, various theories have surfaced on the reason behind his termination. Though some argue that it was because of the team’s poor performance considering Haas finished P10 in the 2023 constructors’ championship, the 58-year-old has himself stepped forward to reveal the actual reason.
During an interview on The Project, Steiner was asked whether he was certain that his dismissal wasn’t because he took too much of the limelight, and he gave a hilarious reply. The former team boss said humorously, “That is a question for him, you know.”
With his response, Steiner took a sarcastic jab at the owner of team Haas, Gene Haas. This jab stemmed from the fact that the latter fired Steiner and named Ayao Komatsu as the new team boss. Even though there are several reasons for this, Steiner cited the difference in leadership as the main cause of his termination.
According to him, Gene Haas took issue with the 58-year-old’s assessment regarding development. Moreover, Steiner added that the owner wanted to do things in his ‘own way’. This is why, in Steiner’s opinion, his contract was not extended.
This decision by Gene Haas received heavy criticism from the F1 community. This is because since Netflix’s Drive to Survive premiered, the 58-year-old has gained popularity among viewers. Fans liked his blunt and straightforward approach toward life.
Steiner’s popularity rose sharply with each passing day and as a result, he could bring a $20 million deal, which Dutch reporter Jack Plooji believes was the real reason behind the Italian’s sacking. Plooji told Planet F1 that after souring a $20 million sponsorship, Steiner asked for team shares. However, Gene Haas declined this offer, prompting Steiner to resign.
What Ayao Komatsu had to say about Guenther Steiner?
Guenther Steiner was instrumental in creating the squad from the ground up. The Italian has been the team’s boss since 2016 and has guided the American team to its highest finish in 2018, P5. However now, instead of Steiner, the task is in the hands of Ayao Komatsu. Certainly, he has some big shoes to fill, yet he is unaffected by this because the Japanese boss does not aspire to emulate Guenther Steiner.
In his discussion with Formula 1.com, Komatsu elaborated, “I’m not trying to be someone else and Gene knows that and if Gene wanted a Guenther Steiner replacement in that way, he would have appointed somebody else. So I understand that Gene wants something different.”
After making these remarks, Komatsu’s first assignment was to get the team ready for the current campaign. However, it appears that he had already set the groundwork throughout the winter. Considering the squad seems to have prepared itself well for tire degradation and to increase race pace.
Their better performance was evident in the first two races. Whether in Bahrain or Saudi Arabia, Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg were quite happy with the car and the latter even scored a point. Thus, after understanding the lessons from the two distinct circuits, Haas will be looking ahead to Melbourne this weekend to learn more and meet Gene Haas’s expectations.
