Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsFormula 1

Haas plans December shakedown

Gene Haas has revealed he is aiming for a December shakedown of the Haas F1 Team's 2016 F1 car.

The Haas F1 Team is set to join the grid next season, using a Ferrari power unit as part of a close collaboration, while Dallara will build the chassis which will be designed at the team's US base. Speaking exclusively to F1i, Haas said the plan leading up to the team's debut includes giving the new car a run at some stage late this year.

"We should increase the pace and gain momentum over the summer when we enter the car’s conception phase," Haas said. "The process will start in America under the stewardship of [Stewart-Haas Racing technical director] Matt Borland, and then move to Europe, with Gunther Steiner taking the reins of the project.

"We are planning to shake the car down in December, but it probably won’t make its official track debut before winter testing in 2016, exactly 12 months from now then. So far, we have managed to follow our programme to the letter and should meet all of our deadlines.

"Of course, there are always obstacles to overcome, but our task should be made easier thanks to the partnerships we enjoy with Ferrari and Dallara. We should also benefit from having a well-located factory in the United Kingdom."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.