Ayo Komatsu is impressed with Oliver Berman's mature approach

      Oliver Berman is facing his first full season in Formula 1 with Haas, but the American team has no doubts about the potential of its debutant and that he is destined for a successful future.

      Ayo Komatsu, head of Haas F1, likes the approach to business, characteristic of the young British driver, and it became obvious after the first practice, which Berman spent at the wheel of the car VF-23 on Friday before the Grand Prix of Mexico in the fall of 2023. "I immediately realized how good he is, - quotes Komatsu publication The Race. - And it's about all his qualities in combination, not just speed, and I've said that many times. I have seen many newcomers who spent Friday training and drove fast, but then many of them had to make a very serious effort to confirm their speed. But Oliver is not like that. I already had a pretty good idea of his racing potential, but what interested me most of all was that he really understood very well what tasks he had to perform during that practice session in Mexico City, and what the team needed from him. He coped with them perfectly ... and then at the meeting with the team very calmly worked with the engineers, explained his mistakes, and I could not even believe that he is only 18 years old. Another test in combat conditions Berman passed last year in Baku, when he replaced the disqualified for one race - So Nico Hulkenberg drove much faster, but it was the team that did not work effectively enough. We should have immediately told Berman that we were wrong when we set him the guidelines. Nico attacked more aggressively, but at the same time his tires were in normal condition, and he could go faster. And we should have explained this to Oliver, but we didn't. As a result, at the end of the first segment we had to ask him to give up his position to his teammate, and, of course, Oliver did not like it. He is quite understandable. He did what we asked him to do, but on the radio he complained. But it was right, he did not argue with the team. Then we discussed everything, found out what we had done wrong, what we could have done better, and continued to work further. But even then, when he was already 19 years old, he showed enough maturity to admit: "Yes, I was not happy, but it was a team instruction, so I did not hesitate to follow it. In the end, that episode didn't affect his result. Oliver always works very calmly, sees the big picture, knows how to accomplish his tasks and learns quickly. I'm eager to see what improvements we can make together".