Starting from Austin, Toyota Gazoo Racing will be the “Official Technical Partner” of Haas.
Overnight, after the initial rumors in July and a clear denial, an unexpected official announcement arrived: the MoneyGram Haas Formula 1 team has entered into a multi-year technical partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing, the division of the Japanese manufacturer responsible for motorsport. In particular, the Japanese giant will provide design, technical, and production services, while the American team will offer technical expertise and commercial benefits in return, with the Toyota Gazoo Racing brand set to appear starting from the United States Grand Prix on the VF-24 cars of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen.
Toyota will thus make its “return” to Formula 1 after 15 years, although no longer as an official team. The 2009 season had indeed come to an end when, due to the economic crisis of the previous year and significant investments that did not yield good results, the Japanese manufacturer based in Cologne decided to shut down operations with immediate effect ahead of the 2010 season.
Technical partnership between Haas and Toyota Gazoo Racing: here are the statements.
The key figure in this partnership has undoubtedly been Haas’s Japanese team principal, Ayao Komatsu, who stated: “I am extremely excited that the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team and Toyota Gazoo Racing have come together to enter into this technical partnership. Having a global leader in the automotive industry supporting and working alongside our organization, while also seeking to develop and accelerate its own technical and engineering expertise, is clearly a partnership with evident benefits for both parties.”
“The ability to tap into the resources and wealth of knowledge available at Toyota Gazoo Racing, benefiting from their technical and production processes, will be fundamental to our development and our clear desire to further enhance our competitiveness in Formula 1,” Komatsu continued. “In return, we offer a platform for Toyota Gazoo Racing to fully leverage and subsequently improve its internal engineering capabilities.”
Furthermore, Komatsu stated that the partnership with Toyota received approval from Ferrari, with whom Haas has renewed its engine supply agreement until 2028: “I am naturally pleased to have the support of entities like Formula 1 and our long-standing partner, Scuderia Ferrari — with whom we announced the further continuation of our collaboration at the beginning of the season, in forming this new technical partnership — aimed at achieving ongoing success in our commitments in Formula 1.”
Finally, Ayao Komatsu extends his thanks: “Together with Gene Haas, I would like to especially thank Stefano Domenicali (CEO – Formula 1) and Fred Vasseur (Team Principal – Scuderia Ferrari) for their support, and with Toyota, I would like to thank Akio Toyoda (President – Toyota Motor Corporation), Tomoya Takahashi (President – GAZOO Racing Company), and Masaya Kaji (Project Manager – GAZOO Racing Company). Everyone at the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team is looking forward to seeing the collaborative results of this new relationship; we can’t wait to get started and achieve our common ambitions.
Additionally, in the joint statement released by Toyota Gazoo Racing, it is stated that the agreement includes the participation of drivers, engineers, and mechanics from the Japanese team in Haas’s test drives. This will allow the drivers to gain Formula 1 driving experience, while engineers and mechanics will learn how to analyze vast amounts of data, such as driving data.
Therefore, it is impossible not to think that an opportunity behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car will be given to Japanese driver Ritomo Miyata, who is currently competing in Formula 2 with the Rodin team thanks to the support of Toyota Gazoo Racing.
Certainly, this announcement lays the groundwork for a new phase for the Haas team, which will likely shift technical production to Cologne, home of Toyota Gazoo Racing, where the Formula 1 project first emerged in the early 2000s, as mentioned earlier, and especially the successful project in the WEC, which was dominant for several seasons.
PHOTO: MonetGram Haas F1 Team, Toyota Gazoo Racing.