Formula 1: Should Haas be concerned with lack of race pace?

Should Rich Energy Haas be concerned with their recent lack of race pace through the first four races of the 2019 Formula 1 season?

After finishing in eighth place in the constructor standings in their first two seasons in Formula 1, Haas had their best season yet last year and ended up finishing in fifth in the standings. After scoring 76 points in the 2016 and 2017 seasons combined, they scored 93 points in the 2018 season.

As a result, the newly branded Rich Energy Haas were in the preseason discussion regarding potentially being the “best of the rest” team behind Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, Scuderia Ferrari and Aston Martin Red Bull Racing this season.

But through the first four races of the 21-race 2019 season, Haas have recorded only one top 10 finish, and they sit in eighth place in the constructor standings having scored only eight points.

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Kevin Magnussen recorded this top 10 finish, which was a sixth place finish, in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix to score all eight of these points for the team. Since then, the season has been a disaster for Formula 1’s lone American team.

The Haas teammates, Magnussen and Romain Grosjean, have been strong in qualifying. Grosjean qualified as the “best of the rest” driver in sixth place for the season opener before a wheel issue forced him to retire, and Magnussen qualified in seventh.

For the season’s second race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, Magnussen qualified in sixth place as the “best of the rest” driver while Grosjean qualified in 11th. But a lack of race pace relegated Magnussen to a disappointing 13th place finish while Grosjean was forced to retire with damage that his car sustained early in the race.

For the season’s third race, the Chinese Grand Prix, Magnussen and Grosjean qualified on the fifth row in ninth and 10th place, respectively. Grosjean ended up finishing in 11th while Magnussen, once again, had to settle for 13th.

Qualifying for the season’s fourth race, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, was not particularly strong for the team, as Magnussen and Grosjean qualified in 12th and 14th place, respectively. The race, once again, was a disappointing. For the third consecutive race, Magnussen finished in 13th, and for the third time in the 2019 season, Grosjean was forced to retire, this time with brake issues.

Should Haas be concerned by their recent lack of race pace? Will they improve throughout the remainder of the 2019 Formula 1 season, and if so, will they improve to the point where they can claim the unofficial title of “best of the rest” for the first time in team history?

Fortunately for them, there is still no clear top contender in the “best for the rest” team championship, and fortunately for their two drivers, this is the case in the “best of the rest” driver championship as well, so they shouldn’t be overly concerned at this point with 17 of the season’s 21 races having not yet been contested.

Additionally, the team also experienced an incident-riddled start to the 2018 season, and they managed to bounce back to finish in fifth place in the constructor standings with several solid performances down the stretch. They even recorded their first ever double top five finish in the Austrian Grand Prix with Romain Grosjean finishing in fourth place and Kevin Magnussen finishing in fifth.