Haas' Hirakawa Crash Halts Abu Dhabi Young Driver Test
Ryo Hirakawa's Turn 1 crash during F1's Abu Dhabi post-season test triggered a 15-minute red flag, disrupting Haas' development program. The Le Mans champion's incident highlighted the high stakes of limited testing time as teams gather critical data for 2026 car development.
Ryo Hirakawa's crash at Turn 1 brought Tuesday's Abu Dhabi young driver test to a 15-minute standstill, forcing marshals to extract the stricken Haas VF-25 from the barriers. The incident wasted valuable development time for the American team during F1's final 2024 track session.
Why it matters:
Post-season tests represent rare opportunities for teams to evaluate new components and driver talent under race conditions. With only two days of running permitted, every minute lost to crashes directly impacts 2026 car development programs. For Haas—locked in a tight midfield battle—such setbacks could prove costly when competitors maximize their limited track time.
The Details:
- Hirakawa, driving as part of Haas' technical partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing, recorded a 1:27.643 lap before the incident—placing him 18th among 20 drivers, ahead of only his teammate Oliver Bearman and Aston Martin's Stoffel Vandoorne.
- Testing Context: The Japanese driver's outing marked his fifth Formula 1 session this season, including four FP1 appearances with Haas and a practice run with Alpine at Suzuka.
- Career Background: A two-time Le Mans 24 Hours class winner and Super GT champion, Hirakawa brings significant endurance racing experience to Haas' development program.
- Program Significance: His participation reflects Haas' strategic alliance with Toyota, leveraging the Japanese manufacturer's motorsport expertise despite F1's engine regulations prohibiting direct power unit collaboration.
What's next:
Haas now faces pressure to maximize remaining track time as teams analyze data from this final 2024 session. The incident underscores the delicate balance between aggressive development testing and reliability during these precious post-season runs.
- Technical staff will prioritize damage assessment to ensure the VF-25 chassis remains operational for Wednesday's concluding session.
- Hirakawa's performance data—despite the crash—will feed into Haas' evaluation of potential 2025 reserve driver candidates.
- Teams are already shifting focus toward pre-season testing preparations, where reliability issues like this could resurface if not properly diagnosed from limited post-season data.