Haas bracing in Melbourne for another crucial tyre test

Haas enjoyed an encouraging start to its 2024 campaign in the first to races of the season, but the US outfit heads to Melbourne expecting another crucial test of its new car’s ability to manage its tyres.

Tyre degradation was a major headache for Haas in the past two seasons, but in Bahrain and more recently in Saudi Arabia, the US outfit appeared to have made significant progress in managing its chronic tyre deg issues.

However, Melbourne’s Albert Park and the inclusion of Pirelli’s C5 softest compound in the manufacturer’s tyre selection mark another new set of challenges for Haas, as team boss Ayao Komatsu explained.

“Having focused our pre-season testing on our biggest weakness from last year – our race pace – I think after the first races which are two very different circuits in very different conditions, we’re pretty satisfied that we have made a step forward both in terms of car and set-up”, commented the Japanese engineer.

“I’m looking forward to Melbourne, again it’s a very different circuit. The downforce level will be back to Bahrain’s level, but it’s a very different circuit from there.

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“Bahrain is more traction-orientated whereas Melbourne is a bit more mixed. It has front limitation as well, and under high speed it’s a bit more limited and then the type of corner is very different.

“In terms of car set-up, even though the demands are different, we’re still going to be focused on the long-run pace. Degradation won’t be as low as Jeddah, or as high as Bahrain, so somewhere in between.

“It will also be the first time this year that we use the C5 tire compound. Historically, we’ve struggled to get the tires to work in qualifying, so it’s going to be interesting.

“Another big factor is tire graining, which previously dominated our tire degradation. We haven’t had severe graining this year so far, so this will be another new challenge for us to manage this weekend.”

The positive signs noted by Haas in Bahrain and in Jeddah in terms of tyre management are an early indication that progress has been achieved by the US outfit’s engineers since last season.

But Komatsu insists his team will have a better understanding of the true efficiency of its VF-24 design after its fourth race, meaning next month’s Japanese GP in Suzuka.

“In the next few races, we need to prove until we do four races, four different tracks, with different tyres and climates, we can’t make a concrete conclusion,” he added.

“Between Bahrain and Jeddah, which are two very different circuits and in both races we performed strongly, that’s a very positive takeaway.

“Bahrain is a rough traction, rear-limited circuit and Jeddah is much higher speed with smooth tarmac and with lower downforce level.

“Melbourne has a similar downforce level to Bahrain, but not as rear limited, it has got high-speed corners and the type of corner is different.

“When we go to Suzuka, that famous Sector 1 with medium- to high-speed corners, they all have different demands.

“So, after those four races, we can draw a better conclusion about what the strengths and weaknesses of the VF-24 are and how we can manage it.”

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