(Motorsport-Total.com) – Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu is encouraged by the sponsorship talks for the coming year (see the 2027 Formula 1 calendar here!). Rumors suggest that BWT is also involved. But Komatsu makes one thing clear: “We will not get pink cars.”
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That BWT docks with Haas is possible: The Austrian company is currently the title sponsor of Alpine but will leave Alpine next year. Because Alpine is planning a new title partnership with the fashion house Gucci for 2027.
Haas, meanwhile, is not being linked with BWT for the first time: Already after the end of the partnership between BWT and Aston Martin at the end of 2021, the US racing team was considered a possible new target for the Austrian company. BWT ultimately chose Alpine – among other things because the company received more space there for its characteristic pink coloring.
Why team principal Komatsu is confident for 2027
Komatsu had explained to Sky earlier this year that a lack of financial resources prevented Haas from hiring additional staff and investing in tools and infrastructure. Therefore, part of his job is to generate additional income for the team through new partners.
At the Madrid ring weekend, Komatsu gave an update. According to him, Haas is in talks with “many interested parties” to bring the team budget closer to the cost cap of around 190 million euros. He said he was “very confident.”
“I believe that we are slowly but surely telling our story externally and finding great people. So far, it is going well, and that helps us enormously.”
Haas is still the smallest Formula 1 team
Haas is the smallest team in Formula 1, employs just over 400 people, and has operated well below the allowed maximum since the introduction of the cost cap.
Although the team currently has a title sponsorship contract with Toyota’s motorsport division Gazoo Racing, which took over this role this year from the payment service provider MoneyGram, Haas wants to further expand its sponsor portfolio.
The candidates for a Haas cockpit in 2027
Komatsu emphasized, however, that Haas is not dependent on closing financial gaps by signing future drivers. The team is still in a position to select its drivers for 2027 based on their sporting performance.
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Ryo Hirakawa, Leonardo Fornaroli, and Rafael Camara have already completed test drives with older Formula 1 cars for Haas. The team is thus examining possible drivers for the future. Komatsu himself speaks of five candidates. These likely include current Haas driver Esteban Ocon, whose performance has recently improved, as well as Yuki Tsunoda.
What matters in the Haas driver selection?
So do commercial considerations play no role at Haas? Komatsu explained: “If the difference [between two drivers] is, for example, within a tenth of a second, so it is really very, very close, then the overall package from the respective connections naturally plays a role.”
The contract durations of current Formula 1 drivers
“But I don’t think this scenario will occur. I think we can decide based on performance. We have not yet completed the entire program.”
“We definitely want two fast drivers because that is the best way to further develop this team. It doesn’t matter whether they are two Ferrari drivers, two Toyota drivers, or two McLaren drivers. Whoever is fastest is the best choice for the team.”
“For everyone here, it is important to know that we have made the best possible driver choice available to us so that these two drivers get the maximum out of the car.”
“Imagine if we took someone who is half a second slower but brings additional money. That would not be very motivating,” said Komatsu.
A team like Haas ultimately depends on the prize money payments from Formula 1. “Every single position in the constructors’ standings brings in quite a lot of money,” explained Komatsu. “For us, therefore, what I have always said applies: We choose our drivers based on their performance.”
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