Ian Parkes & Ewan Gale
Thursday 7 April 2022 13:45 – Updated: 15:41
Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has insisted F1 is taking global freight issues “seriously” but has warned there are no guarantees of cargo reaching destinations at the right time.
Haas missed the first morning of the Bahrain pre-season test after its freight arrived late following a delay in transit.
A similar scenario occurred at last weekend’s Argentine MotoGP event where numerous teams experienced delays, forcing the cancellation of the sport’s entire Friday practice schedule.
Asked if he believed F1 was taking the matter seriously, Steiner replied: “I think F1 takes it seriously but it is one of these scenarios that you cannot really control.
“We all know it is difficult, especially now with the invasion of Ukraine, I think there is a lot of cargo planes out of service now because of the sanctions to Russian companies because they were running or flying the cargo planes.
“So it is not getting any easier and also, the ships, we now know there are difficulties there.
“I think F1 is taking it really seriously, it is just one of these things that are out of control.”
Warning delays could continue throughout the season, Steiner added: “As long as you don’t get your own planes, you are always counting on other people to help you out.
“Hopefully we can get through it and they have put a lot of effort in but I don’t think at the moment, there is a guarantee of anything getting to the right place at the right time.”
F1 “has to deal” with travel costs
As well as the threat of delays to cargo travel, the cost of shipping freight is escalating rapidly, adding more strain on teams within the budget cap.
Addressing the seriousness of the situation when asked if he could shed light on the numbers involved, Steiner explained: “We don’t have exact numbers but it is going up and every time you speak about it it is getting higher.
“These things, you just have to manage as they come along and everybody is faced with the same issue so I think it is a problem for everybody.
“In the end, nobody has got a disadvantage as long as everybody gets the increase, which everybody does.
“You just [have to] deal with it and see how you can navigate to get to the end of the season with the budget intact in the place where you want it to be.”
Daily poll
Will Max Verstappen break his duck and finally take victory in Australia on Sunday?
