As Formula 1 prepares for the fourth round of the 2022 championship this weekend at imola, some team bosses are questioning the legality of the Haas VF-22 this year after a very good start to the season for the small American structure.
Since its entry into Formula 1 in 2016, the Haas team has sourced certain parts from Ferrari, notably borrowing the gearbox and engine. As of this year, Haas has even integrated its design office at the Maranello factory itself with a group of engineers led by Simone Resta in a building completely “unrelated” to the Scuderia Ferrari.
Since the start of this 2022 season, the Haas team has managed to score 12 points in three races and are therefore making a very solid start to the season, especially when compared to the 2021 campaign in which the small American formation n did not score the slightest point with a single-seater whose development had been halted to focus its resources on the 2022 single-seater. These excellent results have clearly been much talked about in the paddock and some are openly wondering whether the Haas VF-22 is simply a simple “copy” of the Ferrari F1-75, which would be prohibited by the regulations in force.
Teams have therefore asked the FIA for clarification and when some team bosses are asked if they think the Haas is too similar to the Ferrari, their response is quite clear: “This is a tough question. Haas made a huge leap forward from last place [en 2021]† They were solid and even went to Q3 in Bahrain I think. So it is an interesting step. † said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.
“For us it’s a bit of a learning curve, we have 2,000 people and we’ve been successful in the past, and suddenly you’re fighting a much smaller team. So they must have done a good job.” concludes the director of Mercedes.
Fred Vasseur, the director of Alfa Romeo, goes even further than his Mercedes counterpart and wants to trust the FIA: † It’s like the old and the new financial regulations where the most important thing is to be able to control everything because since we have restrictions on the wind tunnel, we also have a budget constraint. But we have to trust the FIA, they are doing well. And of course they will be in any case. † said the Frenchman.
On the Alpine side – currently fifth in the Constructors’ Championship – team principal Otmar Szafnauer says he will be very surprised to see such a level of performance for such a small team when the technical regulations have been overhauled this year.
† It’s a small team that has done well all winter, from last place to sometimes third fastest team and that’s a bit of a surprise. † said the American.
“I thought – although Toto [Wolff] didn’t say – that the pecking order would stay almost the same, because usually when there’s a big change in the regulations – over the years I’ve spent in Formula 1 – plus the change in the regulations, the more beneficial it is for those with the know-how, infrastructure and tools to actually take advantage of the new rules. So it’s a little surprising that the Haas are where they are for a small team. But I hope the FIA will investigate and come to the right conclusion between the similarity of the two cars [Haas et Ferrari, NDLR]† †
Heading into the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, the Haas team is seventh in the Constructors’ World Championship, one point behind Alfa Romeo, ten points behind Alpine and 53 points behind Mercedes.
