Haas F1 Makes History with First Female Race Engineer in Modern Formula 1
Haas is aggressively addressing its trackside operations weaknesses with significant personnel changes and creating a historic milestone in Formula 1. The team has appointed Laura Mueller as Esteban Ocon's race engineer, making her the first full-time female race engineer in modern F1.
IndyCar testing on racetrack
Key personnel changes include:
- Laura Mueller as Esteban Ocon's race engineer
- Ronan O'Hare as Oliver Bearman's race engineer
- Francesco Nenci joining as chief race engineer
- Carine Cridelich coming from RB as head of strategy
- Mark Lowe returning as sporting director
Team Principal Ayao Komatsu emphasizes that these appointments were based purely on merit, stating "We don't care about nationality, gender – what matters is work." The restructuring aims to address what Komatsu identified as one of the team's weakest areas in 2024, particularly in trackside operations.
The team has also introduced a new testing program using their 2023 car, allowing new personnel to integrate and build relationships before the season starts. This initiative began in Jerez, demonstrating the team's commitment to improvement.
While the trackside team sees significant changes, the technical team remains stable, following their "fantastic job" in 2024. The technical department, led by Andrea de Sordo, continues their work on the 2025 car, scheduled for its first run at Silverstone on February 16.
After finishing P7 in 2024, Haas aims for consistency in 2025. The team showed improved performance throughout 2024, scoring their most points in the final quarter. However, Komatsu expects tighter competition in the midfield, with Alpine, Williams, Sauber, and RB all likely to show improvements.
The reforms represent Haas's most comprehensive trackside restructuring to date, signaling their commitment to maintaining and building upon their 2024 performance gains.