Montoya: Haas is (c) crazy »
For the Colombian, a former Formula 1 driver between 2001 and 2006, Gene Haas is not making the right choice by setting up a team from Charlotte in the United States, far from the cradle of F1, Europe.
The arrival of Gene Haas in Formula 1 is not yet confirmed, but it is already causing widespread reactions. The latest statement comes directly from the United States, with Juan-Pablo Montoya considering it “crazy” to set up a team from the United States. “If he wants to set up [a team] here in the United States, I think it’s completely crazy,” he declared from Long Beach, where he was competing last weekend in a round of the IndyCar championship.
The seven-time Grand Prix winner claims that to make it work, you have to work in Europe. « You can’t even say it’s crazy since it doesn’t make sense. It’s not possible to bring people from England to Charlotte (where the Haas factory is based, ed.). »
England is indeed, historically, the stronghold of Formula 1: most of the key players in the discipline are based there, benefiting from facilities and a particularly favorable context to develop an F1 team. Of the eleven current teams on the grid, only three are not based in Great Britain: Ferrari (Maranello, Italy), Sauber (Hinwil, Switzerland), and Toro Rosso (Faenza, Italy).
Monday, during his press conference, Gene Haas was already warning the skeptics. “It’s obvious that there is disbelief in everything that is attempted when it has never been done before. I believe the only way to dispel doubts is to try and succeed,” he announced.
The US F1 Failure
The American seems quite confident about the success of his venture. « I can’t talk to you about those who failed. I don’t know why they failed. Maybe where they failed, I will manage to succeed. But I seriously think we have the right tools to move forward and succeed. »
Let us remember that the last American project to join Formula 1 in 2010, called US F1, never came to fruition. Gene Haas will therefore be particularly under scrutiny.
