It's potentially a career-defining decision for the Frenchman, who at the age of 29 is seen as one of the sport's most underrated talents but who is also now vying with the likes of Max Verstappen for a top drive. Yes, which suggests he sees it as a stepping-stone to the Scuderia as Kimi Raikkonen's replacement in 2017. Is the Ferrari partnership why Romain Grosjean has placed his faith in the team? Haas said of the other recent newcomers: "I think that the biggest problem they had is trying to get to the grid so fast, they wound up having to take on partnerships that maybe weren't thoroughly thought out and wound up making a lot of mistakes." GP that he was thinking of entering and, as has been mentioned, they put back their debut by a season. Haas first told Bernie Ecclestone at the 2012 U.S. F1's hybrid era might have taken some of the emphasis off aero, but Haas will also be looking closely at how Ferrari do things in that regard and learning. Marussia and HRT were always going to struggle because they were granted entries on the understanding that a budget cap (which never materialised) would be in place.Īgain, the word partnership is important. With so much Ferrari technology in the car, it stands to reason that Haas's own should be a more competitive proposition. So it means they're not a newcomer in the way that Caterham, Marussia or HRT were? "There has to be some sympathetic relationship there. "I think we have to learn and I think there has to be a reason for Ferrari wanting to help us," Haas added, "and I think this is maybe a new model: why should a bigger team help a smaller team? The collaboration also means that R&D costs should, in theory, be spread across both teams. They have an interest in what we're doing, more so than other ones and that relationship just seemed to work best for us". Why have they formed an alliance with Ferrari?Īccording to Haas, they "seemed to have the best overall programme. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said it's "clearly a very intelligent way of entering Formula 1" which "opens up an avenue for new models of collaboration".
With Haas effectively a Ferrari 'B' team, then, it's seen by some as the first step on the slippery slope towards customer cars, which the rules currently forbid - but which the big teams have been pushing for. The list has shortened over the last couple of years, meaning that, besides its hybrid engine and power train, Ferrari can also supply Haas with its front and rear suspension and even brake ducts (which have become very elaborate in recent years as teams explore their aerodynamic benefits).
There is big-picture stuff here, and it revolves around Appendix 6 of the FIA Sporting Regulations, which lists car parts a constructor must build itself rather than buy elsewhere. Ferrari's Mattia Binotto with Steiner at the 2014 Italian GP
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