Formula1.com technical expert Mark Hughes named the Haas VF-22 as the ‘most improved car’ in the 2022 F1 World Championship.
The Haas F1 Team improved from their slowest pace in 2021 (3.2% off qualifying pace) to eighth fastest in 2022, 2% off. It may seem like a relatively small number, but it is the biggest improvement in performance on the grid.
This improvement is a difference that the Haas F1 team can mix into a midfield battle from being cut off from the rest of the field the previous year and fighting only teammates.
Kevin Magnussen’s fifth place in the season opener in Bahrain meant he was the best finisher behind the ‘Big Three’ teams, while in Brazil he progressed to Q3 and took advantage of a brief opportunity on a dry track to finish the sprint on Saturday gaining a shocking position on pole for such a feat would have been unimaginable in 2021.
The Haas VF-22 was the team’s response to Ferrari’s interpretation of the new aerodynamic regulations, with the 2021 car tracing its origins back to 2018.
Much of that improvement came from the powerful new Ferrari 066/7 power unit (Ferrari and Alfa Romeo are the most improved engines in the top three after Haas), but it’s also relatively better aerodynamically.
The use of Ferrari components all defined its cooling and therefore its aerodynamic concept very similarly, with large bluff sidepods to wash the air around the car.
It also shared with Ferrari the ability to turn the front tires on quickly. This was an important part of the reason why Kevin Magnussen was able to set pole for Interlagos on slicks on wet surfaces.
Category: F1 / A household / F1 machine
