F1 driver who “bailed out” of contract might have changed Haas’ fortunes

Guenther Steiner has revealed that Nico Hulkenberg U-turned on joining Haas, several years before finally arriving.

Hulkenberg has hugely impressed for Haas this season, coinciding with Steiner’s exit as team principal, and has earned a big move to Sauber/Audi in 2025.

Hulkenberg, now aged 37, has driven two seasons for Haas but almost arrived much earlier in the team’s evolution.

“Nico was always a talent who was always in the wrong place, at the wrong time,” Steiner told the Sky F1 podcast.

“I tried to get him. I’m not saying he would’ve been in the right place at the right time in our first year! But I rated him highly.

“We almost got him to sign a contract but he bailed out.

"I got him, in the end! All good.

“With Kevin Magnussen we spoke. He wasn’t racing at the time.

“Ferrari helped us a lot, getting to the first race. We made a deal with him to take on Esteban Gutierrez.

“The year after, we took Kevin after his year at Renault.

“With Hulkenberg we didn’t get him in 2016 but we got him two years ago.

“I can’t be upset if he made a decision. But, if I make a decision, don’t get upset with me!

“That is how we roll…

“We always had pretty decent drivers.”

Steiner detailed how he convinced drivers in Haas' early days: "Tell them what your aims are. Tell them credibly what you can achieve.

"Then people got interested.

"It wasn’t easy - teams were failing, or had failed, and a new team was coming.

"I explained what we were going to do and that’s why they came.

"You always need to be lucky, as well. Right place at the right time. A few drivers were available, who didn’t have a seat.

"We took that to our advantage."

Hulkenberg and Magnussen were finally paired last year by Steiner, a major change of philosophy from inexperienced rookies to grizzled veterans.

Since Steiner left his role, Hulkenberg in particular has excelled as an overachiever.

Magnussen, however, is set to leave F1 after losing his Haas drive.

Rookie Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon will be the new-look duo in 2025 under Ayao Komatsu’s leadership.