Steiner ‘stung’ by not being able to bid farewell to Haas team

Former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner says he was “stung” by not having the opportunity to say a formal goodbye to the team he helped set up and managed for eight years.In a shake-up of the F1 team’s management, team owner Gene Haas opted not to extend Steiner’s contract with the US outfit as the two men were at odds over their vision of the US outfit’s future.While Steiner believed that the team required investment to improve their performance, Haas preferred to maintain the current level of spending and focus on efficiency.Haas has subsequently entrusted the role of team boss to trackside engineering director Ayao Komatsu.Addressing on Saturday morning the audience at the Autosport International 2024 held in Birmingham, Steiner revealed that Haas informed him of his removal between Christmas and New Year.Read also: Gene Haas on Steiner exit: 'It came down to performance'Sadly, he was not given an opportunity to bid farewell to Haas’ personnel.“Can I start with just something off for my side?” Steiner told Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft on the exhibit’s main stage.“I didn't have the chance to say thank you to a few people when I left Haas F1. I would just like to thank all the team members who I couldn't give a proper goodbye to when I left.“So I’ll do it this way. And I want to say also to all the fans who supported us while I was there, it’s fantastic - thank you to everybody for the support I got and I am getting, so I'm mega appreciative.“Yeah, it stung [not to be able to say goodbye] but they all know me and they all know that I appreciate what they did. It's always best to say it to them, it would be nice to say, ‘hey guys, thanks for what you did for the team.’”©HaasSteiner admitted that Haas’ decision came as a surprise to him although he acknowledged that it was the team owner’s prerogative to make such a call.The Italian steered clear of speculating on how Haas would fare under Komatsu’s leadership, while he remained evasive on his own future.“If Formula One wants me, I don't know!” Steiner added."In our situation, I, I'm not in a hurry, you know. There are always people who will see me around in Formula One; I’ve met a lot of people and made a lot of friends.“If there's something interesting and which challenges me, yes, but just looking for a job just to stay in F1, maybe that’s not what I want.”Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and TwitterThe post Steiner ‘stung’ by not being able to bid farewell to Haas team appeared first on F1i.com.