Despite 2024 having just started, the headlines were flooded this week with the news of multiple departures at Haas and the FIA. Also, Mercedes will be experimenting with some new tech this season and some changes are coming the Monza Circuit, home of the Italian Grand Prix.
Guenther Steiner, the long-time team principal of the Haas F1 Team, has left the team with immediate effect. Steiner, who is perhaps more well known for his expletive-filled appearances on the Netflix’s Drive to Survive docuseries, has been with the team since 2014 and now joins the long list of team principals that have been ousted in the F1 paddock over the past few years. This comes off the back of Haas’ second worst season. He has been replaced by Ayao Komatsu, who has been the team’s engineering director since 2016.
Haas technical director Simone Resta has also jumped ship after an alleged argument with team owner Gene Haas. Resta has been on loan from Ferrari since 2021 in an effort to improve the performance of the American team. It is unclear whether Simone will be returning to Ferrari, as he has been rumoured to move to Sauber as they prepare to transition into Audi. Haas have not announced who will fill the position as technical director.
The FIA have lost a third senior member of their organization, as Tim Goss resigns. Goss has been working in Formula One for decades, having spent most of his career with McLaren from 1990 to 2018. In 2023, he was appointed the single-seater technical director for the FIA. While no future plans have been revealed for Goss, it is believed that he will be joining a Formula One team. The FIA have not announced who will fill the vacant position.
The FIA have confirmed that Tim Malyon will be taking over as sporting director. This news follows the departure of Steve Nielsen a few weeks ago. Malyon has been the FIA safety director since 2021, having previously worked with the FIA has head of research since 2019. He has also worked for Red Bull in Formula One and BWM in both DTM as well as Formula E.
The Spanish beer company Estrella Galicia will be moving to McLaren, having been a Ferrari sponsor for three seasons. The move comes after the Italian team signed a deal with beer competitor Asahi Europe and International for 2024. Estrella Galicia has been a long-time supporter of Carlos Sainz, sponsoring the Spaniard through his entire F1 career at Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, and Ferrari.
Williams has extended its engine partnership deal with Mercedes until 2030. The team first began using the Mercedes engine back in 2014 at the start of the V6 Turbo hybrid era.
Mercedes has partnered with Luminar to test some new laser scanning technology on the safety car in 2024. The America-based tech company has been working with car manufacturers including Nissan and Volvo to prepare their LiDAR system for use in road cars. The system uses lasers to create a 3D scan of the area around the car, which is then used to detect debris and other obstacles. This can help race control to more easily access the race conditions.
Monza Circuit has began a large redevelopment project in hopes of keeping the circuit on the calendar beyond 2025. The work will include resurfacing the entire track, updating pit lane facilities, improving grand stands, and expanding circuit tunnels. Monza is competing with Imola to secure their place on the calendar, with both venues only having contracts until the end of 2025. F1 is still undecided on whether both venues will be renewed.
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