Haas are expecting energy management to be one of the key challenges of their 2026 challenger amid significant power unit changes, with Team Principal Ayao Komatsu also suggesting that adapting to the new regulations means that the cars will develop rapidly between the Barcelona shakedown and the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
Amid a wave of new rules<\/a> for the upcoming season, several teams opted to switch focus to 2026 at an early stage in the 2025 season \u2013 and Haas<\/a> were no different, with Technical Director Andrea De Zordo sharing further details about this following the unveiling of the squad\u2019s new livery<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt actually started in the second half of 2024 with a small group looking at the concept of the new car, and it remained with that group until the launch of the VF-25,\u201d he explained. \u201cThe split between resources from there continued to increase towards the 2026 program, fully switching over after the summer break last season.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a small group still working on the VF-25 until pretty late on due to the tight championship fight, and that was a challenge to manage. It was about deciding the main points of focus for both 2025 and 2026, without losing too much time on what we knew would be a big season.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking ahead to where he expects to see the biggest gains in the new regulations, De Zordo answered: \u201cIt\u2019s a good question. It\u2019s difficult to predict now before the first race, and we\u2019re always interested to see if someone has come up with something new.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year, that\u2019s very relevant because literally everything is new, including the power unit. There\u2019s going to be a lot of work initially on both the aerodynamics and power unit, and in both I expect there to be a fast evolution \u2013 what that will be \u2013 I can\u2019t say.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the unknowns, De Zordo believes that learning to manage energy on the power unit side of development will be crucial.<\/p>\n \u201cFor sure, the new regulations will change the balance between aero and energy management,\u201d the Italian said. \u201cInitially with the PU, as it\u2019s all so new, there is \u2013 not necessarily more to gain, but a lot more to lose if you don\u2019t do well. To understand how it works and how to maximize that will probably be the most important part.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter a certain time, when drivers, teams and also power unit suppliers learn more about this new way of racing, then gradually the performance on the energy side will converge between competitors. The main differentiator will then go back to being on the aero side, but I think initially, managing that energy side will be critical this year.\u201d<\/p>\n Komatsu<\/a> conceded that adapting to the new regulations is \u201chugely exciting, but at the same time it’s very, very nerve-wracking\u201d, adding: \u201cWe\u2019re growing as a team in a pretty aggressive way, and at the same time, we\u2019re tackling these brand-new regulations.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s a huge challenge, but we\u2019ve already shown from what happened in Melbourne last year how we recovered from that, and we\u2019ve haven\u2019t stopped improving since.\u201d<\/p>\n The teams and drivers will soon be hitting the track as part of the Barcelona shakedown \u2013 taking place from January 26-30 \u2013 but Komatsu believes that the cars will change between this point and the first race of the season in March.<\/p>\n \u201cThe car everyone will see in Barcelona won\u2019t be the car that races in Australia<\/a>, and I think that will be across the board, because it’s simply too early,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt\u2019s different perhaps having one test two weeks before the first race, but with over a month before the first race, teams won\u2019t stop wind tunnel development.<\/p>\n \u201cHence, the cars testing in Barcelona, and even the first week of testing in Bahrain will be less mature compared to what\u2019s built in Australia for the first race.\u201d<\/p>\n