“Not a bad person at all, he is a more heartless person”- New Haas team principal talks about former colleague Guenther Steiner

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu mentioned that his predecessor Guenther Steiner was more a 'heartless' man rather than a 'bad person' and the former learned a lot from him.

The Italian-American served as the team principal of the only American team in the sport for ten years before his contract with the team wasn't renewed ahead of the 2024 season. The Japanese, previously the trackside engineering director of Haas, was chosen as the successor to Steiner by team owner Gene Haas.

While reflecting on his dynamic with Steiner in an interview with Japanese outlet Auto-sport web, Ayao Komatsu pointed out that his former boss wasn't a 'bad person'. He said:

"We haven't said anything at the moment. Gunter is not a bad person at all, I think he is a more heartless person. He took very good care of me and was a very kind person, and we went out to dinner many times. Of course, he sometimes talked about work while eating, but as a friend, he often talked about his family and didn't talk about work."

The 47-year-old added:

"We both like delicious food, so when we found a restaurant that looked good, we were like, 'Okay, let's go there.' It was a shame that Gunther had to leave the team like this, as the relationship was more than just a boss and subordinate."

---

Ayao Komatsu reflects on changes in his job since he became the new Haas team principal

The Japanese team boss stated that his job has changed a lot since he became the team principal of Haas as now it requires him to set clear goals for the season.

Komatsu reflected on how his new job requires him to be flexible as his approach and goals have to change based on the situation. He said, via the aforementioned source:

"It has changed a lot. The most important thing to keep in mind right now is to 'set specific goals, clearly state how the team will move towards those goals, and communicate this to everyone on the team.'

"If the situation changes and you need to change your goals or methods, you need to be flexible and communicate this each time."

It is a tough act for Ayao Komatsu to follow in the footsteps of Guenther Steiner ahead of a new season given the current position of the team on the grid. It is unclear the amount of time he will be given by team owner Gene Haas to overhaul the goals of the team heading into 2024.