- Toyota Gazoo Racing becomes Haas F1 team’s Official Technical Partner
- Deal will provide Toyota drivers, mechanics, and engineers with F1 experience
- Collaboration includes vehicle development, data analysis, wind tunnel testing, and design of carbon-fiber parts
Toyota hasn’t raced in Formula 1 since 2009, but its chairman, Akio Toyoda, the man who decided that Toyota should exit the sport, still wants an avenue for talented Toyota racing drivers, mechanics, and engineers to experience the pinnacle of motorsports.
That’s why Toyota via its Toyota Gazoo Racing motorsports department is partnering with American F1 team Haas as the team’s Official Technical Partner.
In an announcement made on Oct. 11, Toyota said it reached a basic agreement with Haas on entering a technical partnership concerning vehicle development and other collaborative efforts.
As part of the agreement, the Toyota Gazoo Racing logo will appear on Haas’ F1 cars. The logo will appear on the Ferrari-powered F1 cars as soon as this weekend’s United States Grand Prix at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas.
Haas F1 race car with Toyota Gazoo Racing logo
Toyota said the partnership will not only enable its racing drivers to experience the fastest cars in motorsports, but its mechanics and engineers will also be able to learn how to analyze vast amounts of data to improve development for both Toyota’s road and racing programs. Toyota staff will also participate in wind tunnel testing as well as in the design and production of carbon-fiber parts.
On the driver side, Toyota drivers will get seat time in Haas F1 cars during testing sessions. In a statement, Tomoya Takahashi, Toyota Gazoo Racing’s chief, said one of the goals is to establish a driver development program whose graduates have the potential for F1.
This isn’t the first time Toyota has been linked with F1 in recent years. Last year, Ryo Hirakawa, a Toyota racing driver who competes in the Hypercar class of the World Endurance Championship, was signed as a reserve for the McLaren F1 team.
Toyota competed in F1 from 2002 to 2009, though the automaker didn’t find much success despite having one of the biggest budgets. The global financial crisis put an end to Toyota’s F1 endeavor, and the automaker is unlikely to return with its own team.
