Haas admit 'only time will tell' on Magnussen axing

Haas F1 boss Ayao Komatsu believes "only time will tell" whether his decision to axe Kevin Magnussen will be proved correct. 

For his first big driver decision as team principal, Komatsu elected to drop Dane Magnussen at the end of the 2024 season following seven seasons with the team in two spells. 

Magnussen claimed Haas's only pole position at the 2022 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, but his F1 career is likely to conclude at the end of the year following Komatsu's decision to drop him with Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon coming aboard, with Nico Hulkenberg off to Stake. 

Reflecting on telling Magnussen he would be dropped, Komatsu detailed his own feelings and revealed that time would reveal whether he was correct.

"For instance, I had to let Kevin know that we're not going to continue [with him]," Komatsu exclusively told RacingNews365. 

"That is not a part of the job that I enjoy, but I had to do it. 

"Whether I am right or not, time will tell, but at the time, I made a decision that I believe professionally thinking about the best interests of the team is the right decision."
 

Ducks in a row

Under Komatsu's leadership, Haas has enjoyed a steady season in 2024, banking 27 points from the first 14 races to sit in seventh place in the constructors'. 

In the entire 2023 season, it scored just 12 points and finished last, with Komatsu replacing Guenther Steiner during the off-season, with the Japanese firm that F1's smallest team is heading in the right direction.

"I think because we've got lots of things open, and one of those was the drivers, so to get that over the line was very good," he added.

"We still have some big things open, but recently, we've managed to close many of the big topics, so it feels like we are making progress."