The announcement of the technical and strategic partnership agreement between Toyota and Haas F1 Team caused some confusion, but the Japanese manufacturer wanted to clarify certain things.
The involvement of the world’s largest manufacturer with the smallest of Formula 1 teams does not constitute a return to Grands Prix, just mutual cooperation.
The big boss of Toyota himself, the legendary Akio Toyoda, indicated that this was not a comeback and even less with the intention of developing a new hybrid F1 engine in the future.
The brand is already sportingly involved in endurance in the WEC and in rallying in the WRC as well as in the Japanese Super Formula or Super GT competitions, with no other ambition in Formula 1 than to support Haas in a technological and commercial exchange while training staff in a very competitive environment.
Japanese connection
The Japanese nationality of the main Haas team, engineer Ayao Komatsu, undoubtedly facilitated contacts and made it possible to finalize the agreement which should also motivate young Japanese drivers in the future.
“We look forward to working with Haas for the benefit of the Japanese motorsport world, said Tomoya Takahashi, president of Toyota Gazoo Racing, the manufacturer’s competition department, during a press conference in Fuji (photo above). We have agreed to a technical partnership regarding the training of young drivers and others in the development of Haas F1 Team vehicles.”
Integrate drivers
“Why are we entering into this technical partnership? Let me explain, he added. TGR has implemented driver-focused car manufacturing, as strongly advocated by President Akio Toyoda, as we incorporate feedback from professional drivers into the development of production vehicles.”
“Through this partnership, we think it would be fantastic to be able to train drivers capable of getting seats in Formula 1 in the future, he congratulates himself. And this time, the pilots will not be the only ones to face challenges. TGR engineers and mechanics will also join Haas F1 Team at the pinnacle of motorsport.”
Currently, the only Japanese representative in Formula 2 is the reigning Super Formula champion Ritomo Miyata (25 years old), entered by Rodin Motorsport in a car entirely in the colors of Toyota Gazoo Racing, and it would not be surprising to see him at the wheel of Haas during private post-season testing in Abu Dhabi.
Commercial synergy
“In addition to the desire to better prepare drivers at the highest level, our technicians will participate in the development of F1 aerodynamics using the manufacturing capabilities of TGR in Cologne, which Haas has highly evaluated, he concluded.
Ils will design and manufacture carbon fiber parts in simulated extreme operational environments.”
At the same time, Haas will grant significant space to Toyota on its single-seaters so that the manufacturer benefits from the exceptional visibility of Formula 1 in the world, a symbolic commercial synergy but with high added value.
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