The battle in the midfield of Formula 1 is tighter than ever. Teams like Aston Martin, Sauber, and Haas have recently made significant strides with their car development, while Alpine has fallen further behind. Williams is pushing to bring a competitive package to Spa-Francorchamps, hoping to reestablish itself near the top 10 and reclaim the unofficial title of “queen of the midfield.” Meanwhile, Racing Point needs more consistency. It’s an intense and unpredictable fight, with surprise performances already shaking up the standings. Although many teams are beginning to shift focus toward the 2026 season, some still have development cards to play in 2025, and Haas is among them. The latest Silverstone upgrade produced positive results, but the team must capitalize on that potential, with one more possible development package planned for their home Grand Prix at Austin.
Resolving problems, restoring confidence, and showing clear progress, but consistency in races is still key
Haas’ 2025 season began disastrously at the Australian Grand Prix, where drivers and engineers discovered the VF-25 suffered from severe bouncing at high speeds. In all the fast corners, the American car was at the back of the field and struggling significantly. “The shock wasn’t being last, but the gap to the car in front of us,” said Ayao Komatsu. A project to correct the issue started immediately. In China, with a higher downforce setup and improved balance, Haas showed a notable performance jump on a track with very different characteristics.
The first significant fix arrived at Suzuka: a modified floor introduced without wind tunnel testing, similar to Ferrari’s approach in 2024 with Hungary updates. This first step improved stability but did not fully solve the problem. At Imola, Haas introduced the first major upgrade package, which did not produce a massive step forward in performance but eliminated bouncing, providing a more stable car.
At that point, the VF-25 returned to a more optimal operating window. Engineers could then focus on developing a pure performance package, which finally arrived at Silverstone. “I didn’t find the right feeling until we introduced the Silverstone upgrade,” said Ollie Bearman, highlighting the importance of these updates. “You can’t really describe the lack of feeling, but when you finally get it, it’s really special. The positive thing is that it continued to show on other circuits as well.”
The step forward is evident in the data. In qualifying, the gap to McLaren, Williams, and the midfield in general was reduced by more than four-tenths of a second. Compared to the start of the season, especially on fast circuits that had previously been Haas’ Achilles heel, the improvement is remarkable. The progress wasn’t just about the package itself but the combination of factors: Haas eliminated bouncing, increased downforce, improved stability, and restored driver confidence, effectively putting the car into a better operating window. Altogether, these changes enabled the substantial step forward that has put Komatsu’s team consistently in points contention.
The performance jump, however, has been more evident in qualifying than in races. Unfortunate circumstances prevented the full Silverstone package potential from showing: wet races, an unlucky qualifying, a penalty for Bearman, and races spent stuck in traffic. It will be interesting to see if Haas can perform at a high level in qualifying and better exploit the car’s potential during races.
There is still room for a development package: Austin is the chosen venue, but it must be worthwhile
Haas still has a concrete chance to fight for positions behind the top teams, and there remains an opportunity to make another performance leap. After the mid-season break, the focus will be on maximizing the Silverstone package and capitalizing on the progress made so far. “The car’s setup at the start of the year was tricky; now we’ve improved, and I think we can achieve great things,” said Oliver Bearman.
What can fans expect for the second half of the season? The focus isn’t fully on 2026 yet.
“We are working to bring another package to Austin. It has to be worthwhile to justify the budget used,” said Jonathan Neal, Haas Deputy Chief Engineer, explaining that Haas always aims to introduce upgrades at its home Grand Prix at COTA, Austin. “It naturally fits into our development cycles. We introduced a package at Silverstone, and Austin comes after seven races,” he added, noting that the short mid-season break provides extra time to finalize work and prepare the logistics.
Haas’ careful approach to development shows that while their progress at Silverstone was significant, the team is determined to make further gains before the season’s end and continue to consolidate its position in the highly competitive midfield.
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