Why only Oliver Bearman has the new Ferrari F1 engine at Haas

Esteban Ocon is missing out on Ferrari’s upgraded power unit this weekend. Team boss Ayao Komatsu has explained why

Ayao Komatsu has explained the reasoning behind Oliver Bearman being the only Haas driver to run Ferrari’s updated Formula 1 power unit at the Italian Grand Prix.

The Scuderia is introducing its second powertrain upgrade of the year at its home race, courtesy of the latest ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities for engine manufacturers) rulings.

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Ferrari is bound by regulations to supply the new parts to its customers – namely Haas and Cadillac – but isn’t necessarily required to provide enough for all cars; only one unit is available to each American squad.

At Haas, team principal Komatsu decided Bearman would get the benefit of the new powertrain, because Esteban Ocon received upgrades earlier than his team-mate on two recent occasions. This is expected to be a huge performance differentiator, given how important engine power is along Monza’s elongate straights.

Asked if Bearman had been chosen over Ocon because he’s ahead in the drivers’ championship, with 18 points to three, Komatsu explained the situation was more complex than that.

“Of course that's a part of the consideration,” the Japanese admitted. “But again, the last two items we had [were], like, Carbone Industrie brakes. Esteban was actually struggling more on brake-locking, etc.

Ayao Komatsu, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Guido De Bortoli / LAT Images via Getty Images

“So, considering we got the Montreal upgrade on Ollie first; we decided to give the brake upgrade to Esteban first; and also in terms of power steering, we had another upgrade on the power steering before shutdown, in Budapest. Again, we decided to give that to Esteban because he was more vocal about it, and he was struggling more on the power steering field. So the last two upgrades, we gave them to Esteban. So this time around, it's back to Ollie.”

Komatsu also admitted to an element of frustration with the rules as Ferrari doesn’t have to provide powertrains for both cars and he’s now had to pick a driver.

“Last time around we didn't do that,” he pointed out. “We waited until we had enough engines to introduce to both drivers together. But this time, obviously Monza is a very power-sensitive circuit. So it's a shame to have performance sitting in a garage, right? But of course it makes it very challenging.

“Yes, it would have been better if two engines are available at least. But again, Ferrari is pushing like hell to get as much performance on the engine as possible. Of course they want to introduce it at Monza, right? For the reasons I just said to you. So that means they've got minimum quantity. So just to satisfy the regulation.”

Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team, Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images

Asked by Motorsport.com how he broke the news gently to Ocon, Komatsu added: “There's no point in bullshitting, right? So, exactly what I said, that's the thought process in deciding who's going to get it. So just be transparent about it. Because, again, from day one, we operate in a transparent, as fair manner as possible.

“Now, of course, you can't please everyone every time. But we don't have any hidden agenda. We don't have any personal agenda for one driver or another. We've been building that relationship up.

“Of course, Esteban won't be happy not to get PU number four straight away. But this is the best for the team, and this is the fairest way we can do it. But then nothing is completely fair, right? So all you can do is being transparent up front about it. But, again, that kind of trust doesn't happen overnight. So you've just got to be consistent in that.”