Haas Formula 1 team principal Ayao Komatsu has completed a track outing, driving a 1990 Footwork Arrows A11B ahead of the Italian Grand Prix.
The Japanese team chief took the wheel of the Cosworth-powered chassis earlier this week. The A11B, an evolution of the Ross Brawn-designed A11, was driven during the 1990 F1 season by Michele Alboreto, Alex Caffi and Bernd Schneider.
Powered by a 3.5-litre naturally aspirated Ford Cosworth DFR V8, the A11B scored points only once, with Caffi’s fifth place at the 1990 Monaco Grand Prix.
Komatsu’s outing came ahead of the 13th round of the 2026 season. While Haas got off to a decent start, picking up points in five of the six opening rounds, it has since failed to score. The American outfit currently sits seventh in the constructors’ standings with 21 points.
Ayao took to the track this evening in the historic Footwork Arrows A11B F1 car 🤩#HaasF1#F1#ItalianGPpic.twitter.com/NJRVxs3eLx
— TGR Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) September 4, 2026
Drivers Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon went 14th and 18th fastest in the first practice session at Monza, eighth and 18th fastest in second practice and 14th and 17th fastest in the third practice session, respectively.Â
“The Italian Grand Prix is always a special one for us with our design office located in Maranello, Italy,” Komatsu explained in the team’s preview ahead of the race weekend. “We take the opportunity to welcome many of our team-mates to Monza and have them experience what they are working for every day, and enjoy the atmosphere, which is truly special.
“We’ll be arriving in Italy keen to put a frustrating weekend in Zandvoort firmly behind us. There were positives for sure operationally, but ultimately, we were still looking to find more performance from the VF-26.
“This weekend, we’re bringing another upgrade package to the car, so again, it’s critical we maximise our practice time, evaluate our data comprehensively, and strive to keep pushing in the midfield.
“The races in the second half of the season come thick and fast – which is great – but it’s a challenge for sure. We showed last year that we can continue to find performance deep into the season, and that’s our continued focus.”
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