Steiner: "The more time passes, the more I realize that I stayed at Haas for too long."
Günther Steiner, source: Circuitpics.de
Motorsport-Total.com recently revealed how Günther Steiner admits that he should have left Haas earlier instead of staying with the team for too long. At the same time, the South Tyrolean does not rule out a return to Formula 1, but only if the conditions are right for him. Steiner had led the Haas team into Formula 1 in 2016 and was its only team principal until 2023. However, his expiring contract was not renewed due to differing views on the future between him and team owner Gene Haas. Since then, Ayao Komatsu has taken over Steiner's job.
With some distance, the Italian views the separation from Haas positively: "Since I left Haas before this season, life has been going well," Steiner writes in a column on formula1.com. For the first time in ten years, he was able to take a break, which was good for him.
Steiner: "The more time passes, the more I realize that I stayed at Haas for too long."
Because: "When you step back, you gain clarity - and see what needs to be done. As long as you're there, you deny it, thinking you can make it work, but you can't."
Steiner had to realize that with Haas, nothing more was possible than the occasional seventh, eighth, ninth place. He never achieved a podium in the eight-year team history - also because he couldn't compete with the same weapons as his opponents. Steiner had repeatedly demanded investments from Haas, which he was not willing to make.
"That's not what I want to do in life in the long run. I don't want to finish seventh again," Steiner says. "I'm past that. I want to be able to fight, to fight at the top."
In 2024, Steiner is looking at Formula 1 from a different angle and is present as a TV expert at some races. Among other things, he works with the TV broadcaster RTL, which is broadcasting seven races this season.
Someday, however, he could imagine a real return to the premier class: "I would return to F1 in the future, but it has to be the right project," he clarifies.
