Guenther Steiner believes his Haas F1 Team should be strong this weekend during the Bahrain Grand Prix, just like they were during pre-season testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and in the first race of the season in Australia two weeks ago.
Steiner, the Team Principal of the Haas outfit, saw Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen both qualify inside the top seven at Albert Park, with the latter claiming a strong sixth place on race day, with the only blot being the former’s retirement thanks to a wheel nut issue caused by a lengthy pit stop.
Haas are part of what appears to be another epic midfield battle that includes Renault F1 Team, Scuderia Toro Rosso, McLaren F1 Team, Alfa Romeo Racing and Racing Point F1 Team, and Steiner feels that should this battle be at the front of the field, it would not be as easy to predict the race winner each weekend.
“Our car showed that it was fast in Barcelona and in Australia, so I don’t foresee anything different for Bahrain,” said Steiner. “It’s great for Formula One to have a battle like this in the midfield.
“It would be fantastic if this was at the front – if it could be for first, second and third. Nearly every race could have a different winner. The podium would be filled by more than just three teams. I think it’s very tight. We’re looking forward to the battle because it’s always good to go to the racetrack and have something to fight for.”
Steiner says the gap to the three teams at the front – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull Racing – is smaller in 2019 than last year, but it is still apparent that they will need luck and some misfortunes from those ahead to be in with a chance of a maiden podium finish.
“We’ve moved closer, but we’re still a little bit off,” admitted Steiner. “Our plan is to be solid in fourth place and fight for being the best-of-the-rest.
“If something happens to the first three teams, we’re in a good position to maybe get on the podium.”
