Guenther Steiner admits there are very few positives to take away from the 2021 Formula 1 season as the Uralkali Haas F1 Team look set to end the year without a point to their name.
Ahead of the 2021 campaign, Haas admitted that they would be focusing on developing their 2022 challenger rather than any updates for the VF-21, and as such they have been struggling at the back of the pack all season long.
Neither Mick Schumacher nor Nikita Mazepin have troubled the top ten, with Haas only securing one Q2 appearance in the opening fifteen races, courtesy of Schumacher in the French Grand Prix at the Circuit Paul Ricard in June. Aside from Robert Kubica, who only competed in two Grand Prix in place of Kimi Räikkönen at Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN, the two Haas drivers are the only two yet to break into the top ten this year.
Steiner, the Team Principal at Haas, admits it has been a tough season for everyone at the team, but he is pleased that both Schumacher and Mazepin are continuing to learn ahead of what is expected to be a much more competitive season for the team in 2022.
“[The performance] shows the guys are learning, which is the most important thing to be ready next year,” Steiner is quoted as saying by PlanetF1.com.
“It’s pretty nice. We were close, or Mick was close, to Kimi [in qualifying for the Russian Grand Prix] so it’s always encouraging. At least you get some little satisfactions out of a weekend.
“There aren’t many but every little fight, at least we can take the fight to somebody. I think we are getting better each race weekend and the aim is to be in a good place next year when hopefully we can go for points at the weekends.”
