Motorsport: Toyota Re-enters F1 With New Partnership With Haas

Toyota has announced that it will come back to Formula 1 with a technical partnership with the MoneyGram Haas F1 team. Toyota will enter this partnership with its motorsports and R&D division, Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR). 

Interestingly, Ferrari will still remain the official powertrain supplier of the team despite the new partnership with TGR. Toyota will provide design, technical expertise and manufacturing services to the Haas F1 team, while in return Haas will provide expertise and commercial benefits in return. Furthermore, Toyota aims to develop its own knowledge and skills through its involvement in the pinnacle of motorsports. 

The two firms have inked a multi-year partnership and Haas’ F1 cars will start sporting Toyota Gazoo Racing branding from the United States Grand Prix that will take place from October 18-20. 

This is not the first time Toyota has entered into F1. The Japanese manufacturer first entered the motorsport in 2002 as a factory works team and then as an engine supplier and exited F1 in 2009. Toyota secured 13 podiums and had a best finish of fourth in the constructors championship in 2005.

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team said, “I’m hugely excited that MoneyGram Haas F1 Team and Toyota Gazoo Racing have come together to enter into this technical partnership. To have a world leader in the automotive sector support and work alongside our organization, while seeking to develop and accelerate their own technical and engineering expertise – it’s simply a partnership with obvious benefits on both sides”

Tomoya Takahashi, President of Gazoo Racing Company, said, “By competing alongside MoneyGram Haas F1 Team at the pinnacle of motorsports, we aim to cultivate drivers, engineers, and mechanics while strengthening the capabilities of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team and Toyota Gazoo Racing, and we desire to contribute to motorsports and the automotive industry.”