For years, Haas were the circus act of Formula 1. Günther Steiner yelling “wankers,” Netflix eating it up, the team stumbling from one disaster to another but at least making headlines. Haas might have been a midfield sideshow, but they were loud, chaotic, and very, very visible.
Now? With Ayao Komatsu running the show, they’re professional. Quiet. Focused. No drama, no clowns, no Steiner soundbites. And last year, that made the difference — P7 in the standings, a sense of stability, maybe even hope.
But in 2025, quiet professionalism is starting to look a lot like invisibility. Haas sit ninth, outshone by a resurgent Williams and — lately — even Sauber, who’ve suddenly remembered how to build a car. Haas haven’t collapsed, but they haven’t grown either. And in a midfield this competitive, standing still is basically moving backwards.
Best Moment: Shanghai Spark
China was the one weekend where Haas looked alive. Esteban Ocon finished fifth (helped by Ferrari’s double DSQ, sure, but points are points), and rookie Ollie Bearman climbed from 17th on the grid to eighth on an alternate strategy. A proper double-points haul, strategy on point, drivers delivering. It felt like proof the VF-25 could bite when handled right.
Other bright spots followed — Bahrain points, a sprint result in Belgium — but nothing to build a story around. Just flashes of competence, no lasting momentum.
Worst Moment: Melbourne Misery
The opener in Australia was dreadful. No pace, nowhere near the points, Komatsu admitting he “felt sick” at how bad it looked. And while things improved, the ghosts still linger: a string of point-less races in the spring, then the lowlight of Ocon and Bearman colliding at Silverstone. Not exactly a great look when you’re already fighting irrelevance.
Driver Watch
- Esteban Ocon – Solid, consistent, maybe too consistent. He’s taken 27 of Haas’s 35 points and usually has the edge over Bearman. Ocon’s ceiling might be limited, but he’s dependable.
- Ollie Bearman – Learning the hard way. Has speed in flashes, but penalties, DNFs and rookie mistakes keep him stuck behind. Eight points isn’t bad for a debut season, but he needs to turn sparks into substance.
The Verdict
This Haas isn’t a joke anymore. But it’s also not a story. They’re not chaotic, they’re not overachieving, they’re just… there. Quiet, professional, struggling for consistency, fading into the background while Williams and Sauber steal their oxygen.
Haas 2025 isn’t loud enough to laugh at, and not strong enough to celebrate. Right now, they’re Formula 1 wallpaper — and in this sport, being forgettable is almost worse than being a meme.
