P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Haas’s biggest upgrade of its 2023 Formula 1 season didn’t exactly sparkle on debut. But was that misleading of its true benefit or evidence of a development misstep?
The Haas Formula 1 team introduced a major upgrade package for the United States Grand Prix, which initially showed promising results in practice sessions. However, the drivers, Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg, faced challenges during qualifying, with Hulkenberg dropping from first to 16th and Magnussen failing to make it to Q3. Magnussen acknowledged that he still needed to learn and understand the new car better. Hulkenberg’s final lap in Q1 was disrupted by slower cars, hindering his performance. Both drivers were cautious about drawing conclusions about the upgrade’s effectiveness due to the different track conditions and the need for further evaluation. Additionally, the team’s previous struggles have been related to maintaining performance over a race distance rather than qualifying speed. Therefore, the true test for the upgrade will be on Sunday, during the race.
Source: The Race