Günther Steiner is very pleased with his team and the drivers so far. The Haas team boss says that the experienced Nico Hülkenberg has been a good choice for him. Together with Kevin Magnussen, the duo must ensure that Haas grows to new heights. In addition, Steiner believes Haas can be front-runners in midfield, they “just haven’t had any luck yet,” he told Racer.com.
Hülkenberg was appointed at the start of the year as a replacement for the young Mick Schumacher. Despite the fact that Hülkenberg had not driven since 2019, adding him to the team turned out to be the right choice. So far he has beaten his team-mate each time in the qualifying session, making it to Q3 twice. He scored his first points in Melbourne with seventh place.
According to team boss Steiner, Hülkenberg is now making it clear why he was the right choice for the team. ‘We wanted Haas to grow, together with Kevin (Magnussen, ed.)’, says the Italian. “Now with Hulkenberg, both drivers have to show what they can do and they both have an experienced team-mate to lean on, or to duel against. That’s nice to see.’
Steiner: ‘We haven’t had the luck that McLaren had’
In Melbourne, both drivers showed that they have what it takes to fight for the points. “It’s a good feeling to have when you can see that as a team you can attack and not just have to defend,” says Steiner, who is happy that Haas often comes close to the top ten. “We have a good car and good drivers, we can be sixth on the grid. We just haven’t had the luck that McLaren, for example, has had, with all those cars that failed and Oscar Piastri got eighth place.
All in all, Steiner sees it rosy for Haas. “It is difficult because there is no longer a clear midfield, it is mainly that there is a top four and the rest,” says the Italian team boss. “We keep fighting for everything and we’ve shown that we can definitely get the points and that we can be better than the rest, so that’s what we’re going for.”
