Komatsu cleared up any doubts about the supposed advantage Haas would have by being a Ferrari customer and dropped a phrase that surprised everyone: Audi’s engine is very, very good.
Haas started the season better than expected. They’re fourth in the constructors’ championship and Oliver Bearman just added a seventh place in Australia and a fifth in China, but far from getting ahead of themselves, Komatsu brought them back down to earth and warned that Racing Bulls , Alpine and especially Audi are much closer than it seems.
When a journalist suggested that the Ferrari engine gave them a clear advantage over the others, Komatsu responded with a direct question: “Have you looked at the GPS trace? I don’t think you can say that at all” and then dropped a piece of information no one saw coming: “If we look at what they can do on the straights, Audi is very, very good. Very good.”
The Haas boss explained that what they’re seeing on track is a battle between four power unit manufacturers. Racing Bulls with Ford, Audi, Mercedes with Alpine, and them with Ferrari, and that each one has its strengths. In the Germans case, what stands out the most is their ability to deploy energy on the straights, a key aspect under the new regulations where engine management became central.
Nico Hülkenberg, for his part, confirmed that without the power unit they wouldn’t be where they are, but he also made it clear they still have a lot of work ahead. The German said that in many race situations there are things to polish, and being only two cars on the grid without a customer team means they collect less data than most manufacturers. That puts them at a disadvantage when it comes to understanding how the engines behave in different conditions.
Audi debuted this year as an official team after buying Sauber, and their start didn’t go unnoticed: Gabriel Bortoleto scored points in Australia and made it to Q3 in his first race, something very few expected from a project that’s just starting,Hülkenberg had a trickier start with a retirement in Melbourne due to mechanical issues, but in China he finished 11th and the pace is there.
The surprise Audi generated in the paddock is no coincidence. The German manufacturer arrived with an engine that from the very first moment showed it can hold its own against those that have been in the category for years. Komatsu said it bluntly and with data in hand: the guys from Ingolstadt have nothing to envy anyone. In the midfield, the fight is going to be tight, and the engine isn’t going to be the factor that tips the balance to one side. For now, what’s clear is that the rivals already know who they need to keep an eye on.