Guenther Steiner is out at Haas F1

Silly season has come early to Formula 1.

Just weeks before pre-season testing, major changes are in the works at Haas F1. News broke early on Wednesday morning that Simone Resta, the team’s Technical Director, had resigned. According to reporting from the Italian edition of Motorsport, Resta had grown frustrated with what he perceived was a lack of “motivation” within the team.

But then came the big thunderbolt.

Resta was not the only departure, as Team Principal Guenther Steiner is also out.

As noted, the team’s Trackside Engineering Director Ayao Komatsu will serve as the team’s new Team Principal.

Team owner Gene Haas addressed the change in a subsequent post on social media:

Komatsu addressed the move as well:

The team did not respond to a request for comment prior to publication.

Steiner has been with the team since its inception and helped build the American-based F1 team from the ground up. Steiner recruited many of the team’s initial members to Haas and has been serving as the Team Principal since their first season, in 2016.

Steiner has also become one of the more well-known figures in F1, thanks to a star turn prompted by the Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive. He was a featured player dating back to the first season of Drive to Survive, and last season opened with him and former Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto traveling to one of Binotto’s vineyards in a tiny Fiat.

Now, both are out of F1.