Antonio Giovinazzi’s mistake in FP1 at the United States Grand Prix might play a big part in his future in Formula 1. The Italian was one of five non-championship drivers to get a taste of 2022 F1 machinery in the first practice session.
However, things didn’t go to plan for him, as he crashed less than 10 minutes into the session. This not only brought an early end to his test, but it also bared some unfortunate consequences for Kevin Magnussen. In particular, it was the gearbox, that was damaged.
Why is Haas looking for a driver
As we informed you earlier, one of the main reasons we are even talking about eventual chances for Giovinazzi is the uncertainty around Mick Schumacher’s future in the sport. While the German was able to snatch his first points this year, he produce a couple of crashes, which resulted in very expensive repairs.
Even though there are budget limits in place, teams like Haas have not been able to come close to them. And every shunt – especially the more destructive ones, will bring the money available for upgrades ever closer to zero.
Giovinazzi’s history with the wall
By the way, Antonio Giovinazzi is no stranger to costly crashes. His story started when he made his F1 race debut, deputizing for injured Pascal Wehrlein. In the 2017 Chinese Grand Prix, round two of the championship, Giovinazzi obliterated his Sauber in both the qualifying and the race.
In addition to that, he had an abysmal performance in Formula E last season, where he placed last among the drivers, that competed in all races. Indeed, his ties with Ferrari will be helpful, but as it seems, Nico Hulkenberg seems like the smarter choice as of now.
Haas is now more independent than ever before
Considering the fact that Haas signed a pretty lucrative contract with MoneyGram to be its title sponsor, the team can afford to be significantly less dependable on Ferrari and external factors.
