Steiner: Gene Haas wants to see F1 project through

Haas team principal Guenther Steiner affirms that team owner Gene Haas wants to see his Formula 1 project through amid doubts over the future of the American squad.

Haas joined the F1 grid in 2016 and saw steady growth during its opening three seasons before enduring a difficult 2019 campaign, ending the constructors' championship second to last.

The current challenging financial situation that F1 finds itself in due to the coronavirus pandemic may have a toll on smaller teams, who are hopeful that a reduced budget cap from the originally agreed $175 million figure will be agreed upon for 2021. 

Steiner affirms that Gene Haas is happy to wait longer for a decision but added that at some point, a settlement from his end will need to be made.

“Like all of us, he doesn’t know what is coming in the near future, and whether or not we are having races [in 2020],” Steiner told Formula1.com. “He’s happy to wait longer, but like any businessman, you’re not happy to wait forever.

“Let’s hope over the next few months, we get a better view of the near future, hopefully the situation doesn’t stay as fluid as it is now.

“There is no one to blame, it’s just the circumstances. At the moment, he can stay calm but at some stage he needs to make a decision.

“But at the moment he wants to see it through. We have furloughed people, and we didn’t let them go. It’s one of those things, we just need to make sure we make the right decisions in the future, which keeps him interested into the sport.”

Williams F1 deputy boss Claire Williams recently stated that the money her team earns from going racing is critical to the survival of the company.

Steiner mirrored Williams' words, saying while the threat of falling off the grid is low, the peril remains in place.

“For sure there is a threat out there if there is no income, if there are no races this year, if we don’t get paid for it,” he said.

“There’s always a threat there, if we don’t come back. Giving it a percentage, I wouldn’t know what to do. I think it’s low, but I never would say never.

“We just need to be conscious of what we are doing and make sure we do the best and hope we go racing as soon as possible and we turn it into a positive, that needs all 10 teams to work on that and for F1 and FIA to collaborate with us to make sure that we are here.”