decline Have brought a floor upgrade in United States Grand PrixThe aim of which is to improve the balance and grip of your Formula 1 car while opening up set-up opportunities.
With financial and testing resources strictly limited by budget limits and aerodynamic testing restrictions, teams are focusing on the revised 2026 regulations with new chassis and engine characteristics.
Although Haas has been striving longer than its rivals to improve its 2025 challenger, eighth place in the Constructors’ Championship is still within reach due to the American team’s lack of Sauber There are only nine digits.
This weekend at Circuit of the Americas, esteban ocon A new floor will be tested during a sole practice session, before the team decides whether to use it on both cars or none in sprint qualifying.
Asked by Motorsport.com how much of the upgrade is performance and how much is drivability and flexibility, team principal Ayao Komatsu explained: “It’s both. You improve overall performance and driveability and stability; a package that gives more predictability gives the driver more confidence – it means better drivability.
“The Silverstone package direction (then with a new floor) confirmed to us how we should develop the car, and in principle, it’s a further extension of the steps we took at Silverstone. It was more predictable, more consistent.
Ayao Komatsu, Haas Team Principal
Photo by: Simon Galloway/LAT Images via Getty Images
“In a way, (the new upgrade) should open up set-up opportunities, because some things, it was limiting us to set the car in certain directions.”
Having scored just one point in the last five grands prix, Ocon agreed: “I hope it gives us a little more balance in the places we need.
“Last time we did an upgrade at Silverstone it went in the same direction, that was a positive direction and I’m hoping it will be a step forward. And of course we’ll get a bit more grip as well, that will be nice.
Hopefully that will give us a little bit of exposure and hopefully that will help us get points a little more often. We need to keep scoring, that’s for sure.”
Having only one practice session to test an upgrade is far from ideal, especially as a newbie. oliver bearman could go straight into qualifying with a new package, but Komatsu insisted this would not be an issue.
I think he should be OK, because we’ve made big changes before,” the Japanese said. Like the Spa Sprint weekend, what we had to change between FP1 and Sprint Quali on Esteban’s car – essentially going from a much higher downforce setting to a lower setting. The difference (at Spa) was much bigger than the upgrade.
Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team
Photo by: Sam Bloxham/LAT Images via Getty Images
“So provided that the characteristics we have developed are right – and basically both of our drivers, Olli and Esteban, want the same thing in terms of stability, in terms of through-corner balance – if we measure up and if Esteban’s reaction after FP1 is positive, I see no reason why it is not positive on Olli’s car.”
Komatsu is determined to prove that the Haas team is skilled enough to develop a car throughout the F1 season, as it has had a reputation for failing to do so, scoring only 8% of its 2022 and 2023 points after July. However, in 2024 – Komatsu’s first year as team principal – Haas collected 31 points after the summer break, while the team’s current post-break tally is 11.
“Assuming that tomorrow (the upgrade) will be good, I have to say I’m really happy with how we’re developing the car,” Komatsu said.
Two years in a row we were told we couldn’t develop the car, and then last year we proved we could – and then this year, basically the same people working together proved for the second year in a row that we could develop the car, so that gives everyone a huge amount of confidence.
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