Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu says five drivers remain in contention for the team’s second Formula 1 seat in 2027, while insisting outright performance will take priority over manufacturer affiliations, sponsorship or additional commercial backing.
Speaking to media including GP-News.net during the Madrid Grand Prix weekend, Komatsu also gave an optimistic assessment of Haas’s financial outlook for next season. The American team is working to strengthen its commercial structure and move closer to Formula 1’s budget cap while continuing to assess several candidates for its future driver line-up.
Haas has five drivers in contention for its 2027 F1 seat
Komatsu reiterated the strict approach Haas intends to follow when choosing its drivers, dismissing the idea that financial considerations or technical partnerships could outweigh outright speed.
“I’ve always said that we choose drivers based on performance. Performance absolutely comes first,” Komatsu said.
“If two drivers have equal performance, then affiliations or commercial packages matter. But we are never going to take somebody who is three tenths slower just because they have Toyota, Ferrari or an extra five million behind them. For us, performance comes first.”
Komatsu used Leonardo Fornaroli as an example. The Italian has already taken part in tests with Haas machinery and is among the leading candidates for the seat currently occupied by Esteban Ocon.
“Take Fornaroli, he’s a McLaren driver, right? But honestly, it doesn’t matter,” Komatsu explained. “Whoever is fastest is the best choice for the team.”
“All 400 people working here need to know that we have chosen the best drivers available to extract the maximum from the car. Imagine signing somebody who is half a second slower just to have more money. That would not be motivating at all.”
“Also, gaining one position in the Constructors’ Championship is worth quite a lot of money.”
Haas uses TPC testing to evaluate its driver options
Haas has been carrying out an extensive track programme to assess the different possibilities before making its 2027 decision.
The team continued that work with further TPC — Testing of Previous Cars — running at Jerez, where Japanese driver Sho Tsuboi and Haas reserve Jack Doohan were among those given track time.
Asked how many candidates were still realistically in contention for the available seat, Komatsu struck an upbeat tone.
“We are in a very fortunate situation,” he said. “There are so many drivers interested in our seat. I would say there are five.”
Komatsu did not name the five candidates on that occasion. Fornaroli and Doohan are among the drivers being considered, while Rafael Camara, Yuki Tsunoda and Ryo Hirakawa have also been linked with the opportunity.
Camara’s prospects have risen considerably in recent weeks. The Brazilian, a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, is currently competing in Formula 2 and has increasingly emerged as one of the notable names around Haas’s driver discussions.
Komatsu says Haas will not choose a slower driver for commercial reasons
The central principle behind the decision remains clear. Haas has strong relationships with both Ferrari and Toyota, while several potential candidates have connections to different manufacturers or development programmes.
Komatsu, however, says those affiliations will only become relevant if there is effectively nothing to separate two drivers on performance.
That position is particularly important for a team trying to maximise every available resource. A driver who can extract more from the car can potentially deliver additional championship positions, and therefore additional prize money, making pure performance a commercial consideration in itself.
Haas optimistic about 2027 budget and new commercial partners
Driver selection is not the only area in which Haas is planning for the future. The team is also looking to strengthen its commercial operation and increase its annual spending towards the maximum permitted by Formula 1’s financial regulations.
Despite its significant partnership with Toyota, Haas has historically operated with one of the smallest workforces on the grid. Increasing commercial revenue would therefore give the team more scope to strengthen its operation and make fuller use of the available budget cap.
One name mentioned in paddock speculation is BWT, which is currently Alpine’s title partner but is set to be replaced in that role by Gucci from 2027.
Asked about the possibility of signing partnerships of that scale — and whether such a deal could result in a dramatic change to the car’s colours — Komatsu responded with confidence and a joke.
“We’re talking to many potential partners,” he said. “I’m very optimistic about next year’s budget. It helps us enormously and we’re finding some very good opportunities.”
“But we’re not going to have a pink car, if that’s what you’re asking!”
Bearman Madrid crash not expected to affect Haas upgrade programme
Komatsu also addressed the financial consequences of Ollie Bearman’s crash during the Madrid weekend, which damaged the British driver’s VF-26 chassis.
Formula 1 teams must account for accident damage within their wider financial planning, meaning a sufficiently expensive sequence of crashes can potentially affect development spending later in the season.
Komatsu, however, does not currently expect Bearman’s accident to force Haas to alter its remaining upgrade programme.
“At the moment there is no risk that this will affect the upgrade programme for the rest of the season because of the repair costs,” he said, “although I don’t yet know the full extent of all the damage and the costs.”
Haas therefore heads towards 2027 with two major decisions developing in parallel. The team is trying to increase the resources available to its Formula 1 operation while also deciding who should occupy its second car, and Komatsu has made clear that no amount of commercial backing will compensate for a meaningful deficit in performance.
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