Haas not responsible for loss of pace since last year – Magnussen

2020 F1 season

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Kevin Magnussen believes Haas’s loss of performance since last year is not due to anything the team has done with its car.

Haas endured a difficult 2019, falling to ninth out of F1’s 10 teams. However over the last two weekends at the Red Bull Ring the team lapped six-tenths of a slower than it did last year.

“I don’t think anything the team has done has made the car worse at all,” he said when asked about the team’s pace. “There’s different reasons for that.”

Magnussen highlighted the fact Haas’s fellow Ferrari power unit users – Alfa Romeo and the works team – are also considerably slower than they were last year.

“I think if you look at all the Ferrari-powered cars, there’s some similarities. I think that’s probably something that is holding us back a little bit.”

During pre-season testing the FIA revealed it had reached a settlement with Ferrari following an investigation into the team’s power unit. New rules governing power units were introduced for this season, which is believed to have hurt the performance of Ferrari’s engine.

The exact details of the settlement between Ferrari and the governing body has been kept secret. Magnussen said he was not concerned about any political fight between the teans.

“I don’t know anything about this fight, I don’t know if there is a fight,” he said.

“All I see is that we are slower on the straights this year compared to last year, having to drop more downforce than we did last year. And that’s all I know.

“I can’t even say for sure that that’s the engine. I can just conclude that we’re slow on the straights and we’re having to drop more downforce than last year.”

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2020 F1 season

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22 comments on “Haas not responsible for loss of pace since last year – Magnussen”

  1. So, Haas wants to develop a car they didn’t build using a driver who can’t even tell if the engine got considerably worse? how hard can it be…?

    1. I think with the obvious drop in pace for all of the Ferrari engine teams and the dubious conclusion to the investigation by the FIA that something fishy was going on with their engine.

      I believe in this particular case he’s being somewhat political in his remarks, he could very well call out Ferrari and blame them and the engine but it could potentially cause problems for himself and Haas.

      1. Almost everyone was slower on the straights, that is why times were lacklustre, it is the new guidelines, Ferrari definitely hit the hardest.
        The team made the brake ducts, they aren’t working, the ones that were on that 2019 ferrari used to work but haas and ferrari were not as clever as RP and Merc.

    2. You do realize that all drivers apart from Alonso are much more reserved in the expression of their opinion on engines?

    3. F1oSaurus (@)
      15th July 2020, 10:05

      @mrboerns I know right? How can he not tell. Probably more likely that it’s PR talk that he’s not allowed to say the engine has less power.

    4. Boo, Mr. Boerns! (can’t tell if the name is a Simpsons reference or not).

      Anyway, ever heard of reading between the lines? He’ specifically notes that other Ferrari powered cars are also slower/in the straights. Kevin aka K-Mag aka
      K-Magesum Block, is clearly saying this new, legal SF engine is much slower without quite biting the hand that feeds the hand that feeds him.

      On another topic, I’d really love to see
      a) Haas stay

      b) Pair with Renault PUs since the initial supposed success from Ferrari satellite engineers within Haas is lonnnggg gone + the PUs suck now. Renault will appreciate a partner/ally for $, development and voting partner.

      c) KM and RG replaced. These guys, even factoring in car problems, have shown they are not top flight drivers. They’re good on their day, but not good enough while one seems to always have ridiculous problems and the other’s most notable talent is blocking.

      1. F1oSaurus (@)
        15th July 2020, 11:48

        @Robbie won’t allow reading between the lines. They have to literally say “Ferrari fixed their illegal engine and that’s why we are slower now” even though it’s indeed pretty much clear that’s what he is implying. Still, not allowed sorry.

      2. I like the Renault idea. I wonder how Gene Haas would feel about moving away from Ferrari?

        The current Haas drivers are probably better than their performance leads on, but they should still look at shaking up the organization.

    5. Surely you are bright enough to read what he is actually saying.

      He knows perfectly well what is where the lack of pace is comming from.
      He also knows that throwing Ferrari under a bus in HAAS buisness model is a terrible idea.

  2. Interesting case.
    They are customers. Supplier does something shady, then settles with FIA in total secrecy, but as a result you are left scrapping at the bottom of the field, saying “goodbye” to possible income had you finished higher.

    In a normal world the supplier would be immediately ditched and sued.

    F1 is not a normal world.

  3. But it’s all ok the 2019 Ferrari engine was 100% legal!

    1. Haas was a potato even with an illegal, very powerful engine.

      1. F1oSaurus (@)
        15th July 2020, 10:05

        @m-bagattini 6 tenths faster potato though.

  4. I have heard in may about a trouble linked to the redesign of the rear suspension and gearbox on Ferrari powered cars for 2020 (both listed parts used by Alfa and Haas), since that Ferrari discovered excesive torsional deformation on the gearbox casing and had to redesign the casing and/or suspension parts. Theorerically new parts will be available correcting the issue at Hungaroring.

  5. Definitely not to with the engine investigation. No Sir. No way.

    Literally couldn’t be more obvious.

    1. Indeed, for the “good of the show”, the old 2019 Ferrari engines should be made legal again! No further development allowed, just that spec of engine.

  6. GP2 Engine?

  7. Adam (@rocketpanda)
    15th July 2020, 13:00

    Pretty obvious looking at the performance of the three Ferrari powered teams that whatever was going on with Ferrari’s engine last year was something fishy. If one or two were poor it’d be no surprise but all three of them? Pretty weird to think not long ago we were all talking of how the Ferrari unit was one of the strongest, if not outright strongest on the grid and now it looks like the absolute worst. These weak performances make me ever more curious to know what was in the FIA’s ‘locked’ findings…

  8. This is a team that didn’t know why their car was flawed in a disappointing 2019 season. It’s a good time to subtly blame Ferrari to hide its other flaws, like why it’s brake pads melt after 10 laps.

    1. Yes, yes, the package was never good, but this is about speed traps and how power unit debacle just brings them down to almost Williams level. Alfa was going pretty well until the PU changed.

  9. But haas responsible for not matching Ferrari’s pace.

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