Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff gave a hilarious forward for his friend and former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner's book titled Unfiltered. The Italian-American has been out of the sport since the end of the 2023 season when he was let go by the American team after almost a decade with them.
Steiner was one of the key figures in bringing the Haas F1 team to the grid in 2016 and helped them achieve P5 in the Constrcutor's Championship and a pole position at the 2022 Brazilian GP.
Known for his fun and colorful personality, Guenther Steiner was a popular figure in the F1 paddock and got on well with his fellow team principals. He and Toto Wolff shared a fun dynamic that was captured in the Netflix series, Drive to Survive.
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So when the 59-year-old approached the Austrian for a forward for his book, Wolff wrote some hilarious words which were revealed on the Fast and Curious podcast episode released on October 11.
"I must confess that I was in two minds when Guenther asked me to write this forward. On the one hand, I was flattered that he would consider me for this job, on the other, I had to ask myself, does the world really need another f**king Guenther book?" Wolff wrote. (17:20)
Guenther Steiner had no qualms of leaving his job at the only American team on the grid and believed that should have left it sooner.
Guenther Steiner gives his take on losing the role of Haas team boss
Former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner claimed that he should have left the job sooner as there was a lack of progress within the team after the COVID-19 pandemic where they finished P9 and P10 in the 2020 and 2021 seasons respectively.
In his exclusive interview with The Mirror on October 12, Steiner said:
"We started off, we had nothing. We worked our way in to be respected in F1. We achieved a lot of things. But then, after Covid was over, there was no traction anymore. We were spinning our wheels, you know? It's more of the same. I want to have success. And what is success? Going on the podium, trying to win, at least to have a fair chance to go on the podium," he said.
Further talking about how he later on 'realized' that he should've left sooner than he did, the 59-year-old said:
"But if you yourself think, 'It's not going to happen with how we are doing it, the best we can hope for is getting sixth or in a fantastic year, fifth'... I've done that, got the T-shirt. But when you're in the trenches, you don't realize it anymore. You keep on going. But when you're out, you realize, 'Wow, should I not have left before?' Yes," he said.
Guenther Steiner was replaced by Ayao Komatsu in the role of the team principal ahead of the 2024 season, with the Japanese on the verge of leading the American team to finish P6 or P7, their best since the 2018 season.
