Haas need to stabilize the current “bumpy road” form

Haas had a very competitive car for most of the season, but haven’t scored points since Mick Schumacher and Kevin Magnussen finished sixth and eighth at the Austrian Grand Prix in July. The US-owned company is currently eighth in the Constructors’ Championship.

Steiner believes one of the problems is that last year it was more difficult for the team to make all the right decisions and make the most of the faster car it has in 2022.

“Sometimes we were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said. “I put it down to the fact that the last two years have been tough and you can’t suddenly go from the level we were at the last two years to go out with the best in the world.

“It’s going to be a bit of a bumpy road and we’re on that bumpy road, but we have to stabilize it at some stage. This bumpy road is no longer acceptable. You can do this for a while.

“To rise again, this year is like a second start for us, because last year we did not develop anything, we ran where we ran, the competition was small.

“As I always say, the further you go up, the thinner the air gets, the harder it gets for the riders, for the team, for everybody. And every little thing matters.”

The last Singapore Grand Prix was compromised for Haas due to contact with Red Bull and Mercedescars that the team would not be racing in 2021. Steiner acknowledged that there are some positives to this.

“We had incidents where we got hit a second time!” he joked about last season. “I see the good in it. It’s disappointing, but it shows that I’m not being negative about our game, it’s just a little frustrating.

“We can’t expect to suddenly go from where we were last year to where everyone expects us to be. I think we can do better than we are, and we can achieve it.”

Asked what the team could do to improve the situation, he said: “I think we just need to think about how we approach things a little bit more.

“I don’t think there’s a lot of personnel changes or anything. Maybe we need to add a little. But at the moment it’s more like just getting back the confidence that we can always perform at this level. But these are things you learn.

“The most important thing is not to make a mistake a second time. For me, this is always the most important thing. You can make a mistake once – you will correct it, the second time – it is not good. For the third time, I think you’re an idiot.

“So we need to do that and hopefully we don’t find any more mistakes that we’re going to make.”