Haas: Results do not reflect 2018 F1 car’s potential  

The Haas Formula 1 team’s results from the opening four rounds of the season do not do its 2018 car any credit, according to team principal Guenther Steiner. 

Despite making impressive strides with its 2018 car, which has at times proved to be the fourth-quickest package this season, the American squad sits a low-key eighth in the constructors’ standings and just one point clear of Sauber.

Haas looked set to complete a brilliant double points finish in Australia with both its cars running comfortably inside the top five until an cross-threaded wheel nut issue during the pit stop window forced both Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen into retirement. 

Magnussen went on to score solid points in Bahrain and China, but damage sustained in a collision with Sauber driver Marcus Ericsson in the early stages in Baku curtailed the Dane’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, while Grosjean - who is yet to record a top 10 finish this year - crashed out under a Safety Car period while running sixth.

“The potential is there that we get some more because the car is constantly at a good level. Even when the other ones are bringing upgrades,” Steiner explained. “We were fast on five race tracks [including Barcelona pre-season], which is a quarter of the season.

“Yes we could have one or two races where we are lagging a bit behind but otherwise we are always between the fourth and fifth fastest car over the weekend, we just have the second least points at the moment. 

“It doesn’t do credit to what we have got. We just need to get a good weekend and we will have forgotten about the bad ones.”

But Steiner is not worried by Haas’ current position, and believes results will start to show once his team is able to perform at the top of its game for an entire race weekend.  

“The whole weekend, until qualifying started, was very well executed, we had no down time with the car and we did a lot of good things. The guys know themselves if they are good or not. 

“Until you get the momentum going you assure them they are doing good. They keep on coming back because they are convinced that we can get it done. They are not lacking. 

“In the position like we are in we have got a good team, everything is good, we just need to get it together for one weekend, execute it well over the whole weekend and we will be fine. 

“Just at the moment it feels like we always let it slip. Then you always feel like you are running out of time but then again it’s only race four. I’m not saying its fantastic, we should have done better. But it’s not the end of the world.”