Ayo Komatsu: In Bahrain we are at the end of the pack

On Friday, Haas was the first to unveil computer renderings of the 2024 vehicle, the VF-24. New team manager Ayo Komatsu spoke in a detailed interview about the changes that had already taken place, plans to refine the car and assessed Haas’ chances for the coming season.

Question: Today the team presented computer renderings of the VF-24. Is it fair to say that the car’s concept was embedded in the updates the team presented at the end of 2023?
Ayo Komatsu: Speaking of physical changes, everyone knows that the new things we brought to Austin reflected the concept of this year’s car. However, due to the fact that we were faced with physical limitations related to the fact that the structure had to withstand a certain force of side impacts and the locations of components and cooling systems had to be completely specific, we were not able to achieve the intended VF-24 concept. But I knew clearly the direction we would be working in 2024, and everyone could get the first gig in Austin.

Question: How were your first weeks as team leader?
Ayo Komatsu: I have a lot to do, but we have a positive atmosphere. Everyone I’ve spoken to sees opportunities for improvement. We needed a clear goal, a vision of the future and communication. It was necessary to remove completely unnecessary barriers in the team.

Everyone needs to understand what they are dealing with, how the team is moving forward and what approach we want to take during the races.

I spent a lot of time talking to as many people as possible to share our approach and get feedback. Of course I don’t try to do everything alone, on the contrary.

We have great people, so my job is to create an environment where they can thrive and be the best they can be. Everyone in the team is very responsive, motivated and positive – it’s great.

Question: What changes have already taken place in the team?
Ayo Komatsu: Andrea de Zordo is our new technical director. In the past he was a chief designer and he is well versed in the technology. He is good with people, inspiring and a good listener, so I am happy with his appointment. We are currently looking for a lead designer, but I believe we already have candidates on our team that we can promote to this position.

Another key position is the machine development director. We did not previously have this position, but it now exists and is filled by Damien Brayshaw, previously head of the machinery department.

He will oversee the creation of technical innovations, collaborate with the aerodynamics department, and will also be responsible for all other aspects of working with the car – from creating a full-fledged model to working with racing engineers, tire specialists, and so forth.

These are the most important changes. We bring everyone together, communicate and decide which direction our ship will sail.

Q: Has the fact that you only took over as team manager in January affected your preparations for the season?
Ayo Komatsu: This partly affected the preparations, as the decision was announced on January 10 and the entry into service of the new car is scheduled for February 11 – this is a fairly short period. However, from the point of view of building the car and preparing it for testing, my arrangement had no effect.

Not only did I take over, but our technical director also left, leaving two important vacancies to fill. We formalized everything and communicated these structural changes to the world as quickly as possible.

The timing of this transition period was not good, but I was very impressed by the maturity of everyone’s response. This allowed us to keep inconvenience to a minimum. Now that the team has decided on the structure, we can move forward.

Q: What are the team’s goals for 2024? What role can racers play in the development of the VF-24?
Ayo Komatsu: As I said, in Bahrain we will be at the end of the pack, if not the very last. Since taking over the team I have had extensive contact with our managers in the UK and Italy and they are all enthusiastic about the opportunities to add and improve in all areas.

The reason that the car we presented in Bahrain will not be particularly fast is not because our staff does not have sufficient knowledge, but because we started the pre-season preparation late and then interrupted it for two months to make updates for Austin to prepare.

This diverted resources, we lost time, but the team, now working in the wind tunnel, already sees opportunities to win back. This is positive and indicates that we are on the right track.

We have paid special attention to establishing an effective testing program in Bahrain. This is necessary to collect high-quality data, which the team will then analyze and understand in which direction the car should be developed. We need an accurate understanding of VF-24’s strengths and weaknesses. Then we create a plan for releasing updates that we didn’t have before.

The riders will also play an important role. Last year, based on subjective feedback, the drivers understood the car’s weaknesses, but we could not reflect their wishes in our car development program. Thanks to the changes in the team, we want to remedy this and involve the drivers more in the process of refining the car, so as not to miss anything.

Engineers have information from various sensors at their disposal, but they cannot sit behind the wheel and feel the car’s behavior. That’s why we need to better understand rider feedback and respond to it more effectively.

Q: Will changes in the team be reflected in the VF-24 or will your full influence be reflected in the 2025 vehicle?
Ayo Komatsu: One of the most important changes was how we shape the organizational structure, so that the team works as one, understands the car and how it can be improved. First of all, I want to see how these changes will affect the process of modernizing the car.

Question: Looking back at 2023, the VF-23 performed well in one fast lap, but its weaknesses emerged over the course of the race. Has the team identified the reasons and resolved them in VF-24?
Ayo Komatsu: Making updates to the Austin leg was very helpful in understanding the VF-23’s problems. Mainly because Nico returned to the previous configuration and Kevin continued with the new one, we saw a difference in performance in different types of corners. The team collected a lot of data that confirmed which areas to focus on when building VF-24.

A lot of work has been done that really slowed down the development of the VF-24, but if we hadn’t done that and had a huge surprise during pre-season testing, it would have hurt us a lot.

It’s always a difficult balance to find, and making things new for Austin has meant that VF-24 isn’t as advanced as it could have been, but at the same time we feel more confident in the direction we need to go.

We are realistic and understand that the car we bring to Bahrain will not necessarily attract everyone’s attention. All our efforts are aimed at understanding the characteristics of the VF-24 and identifying ways for its further modernization.

Question: In previous years there has been a tendency for the team to start the season well, but then the opponents added more progress. Is there a solution to prevent this in 2024?
Ayo Komatsu: We have made changes to the team’s technical structure to ensure that everything we learn on track will be used to refine the car.

The previous organizational structure did not always allow this. The people who worked at the track were closed to themselves, the aerodynamics and CFD departments were closed to themselves. This is one of the main reasons why we couldn’t improve the car and we dropped back during the season.

Now, even if there are some disagreements, everyone clearly understands in which direction the machine is developing, as communication within the team has improved and all processes have become more open. Therefore, I believe that this year we have more opportunities to modernize the car.