Haas roll into Austin draped in stars, stripes — and bringing a little extra speed
Haas aren’t shy about leaning into the home crowd at Circuit of the Americas, and this year they’ve gone full Fourth of July. The VF-25 will run a one-off United States Grand Prix livery in Austin, a punchy red, white and blue treatment splashed with stars and stripes — a fresh twist on the Americana the team has rolled out at recent US rounds.
The reveal arrived with the kind of swagger you’d expect: “Born in the USA. Built for COTA,” blared the team on social, American flag emoji and all, alongside a quick-cut video spinning the VF-25 under the lights to a country guitar lick. It’s loud, it’s proud, and it suits the week.
Born in the USA. Built for COTA. 🇺🇸
#HaasF1 #F1 #USGPpic.twitter.com/PaVEKwVjCL
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team)October 13, 2025
The paint isn’t the only new thing on the car. Oliver Bearman has teased a small upgrade package for the weekend — a handy bit of timing as the paddock settles into a Sprint format at COTA. With only one hour of practice before parc fermé, any fresh parts need to work right out of the box. Team principal Ayao Komatsu knows it.
“We’re very excited for the United States Grand Prix, COTA always feels like home,” Komatsu said. “It’s a busy week with a lot of activities, but with the added fact that it’s a Sprint, you’re running off adrenaline the entire weekend. We’re bringing a small upgrade package here, but since it’s a Sprint weekend, we will only have FP1 to evaluate it, so it’s even more crucial that we hit the ground running.”
Haas arrive off the back of a morale-boosting points finish in Singapore, Bearman bagging P9, and there’s a sense of momentum building for the rookie as he prepares for his first US Grand Prix as a Haas driver. While plenty of teams have pivoted hard toward the 2026 rules, Haas have kept a steady trickle of updates alive in 2025. If there’s a track where that faith in the current car could pay, it’s here.
“It feels like we’re building momentum each weekend, we know the car is fast, and with another update coming to the VF-25 in Austin, I feel like this should be a strong weekend,” said Bearman. “This will be my first US Grand Prix as a MoneyGram Haas F1 Team driver, so I know it’s going to be full on, but it’s so nice to soak in the atmosphere and passion from all the American fans. Sharing a mutual passion and love for this team and sport, COTA will be a highlight of this season for sure.”
Komatsu hasn’t minced words about the target: both cars in the points. That’s a tall order at a circuit that mixes heavy braking zones, fast esses, and the sort of tyre punishment that punishes any setup misstep — never mind the infamous bumps that can rattle a floor and driver alike. Get the ride height wrong, and you’re fighting the car; get it right, and the VF-25 has shown it can hang in the midfield dogfight.
Esteban Ocon is also leaning into the week. “I’m excited to head back to Austin, especially as a MoneyGram Haas F1 Team driver,” he said. “It is such a cool city with so much energy, and I always look forward to coming back. This is one of our home races so we know the American fans will again provide an amazing atmosphere throughout the weekend. COTA is a fun but challenging circuit which always produces some entertaining racing.”
Away from the livery, the quieter subplot is how Haas manage the Sprint parc fermé squeeze. One shot at setup, then straight into qualifying pressure: it rewards teams that arrive with a car in the window. That’s been one of Haas’s better habits this year, and it’s exactly what they’ll need if Bearman and Ocon are to convert the team’s optimistic tone into points on home soil.
Ocon has been sharpening on the sim and in training since Singapore, and Bearman sounds like a driver who’s found a rhythm. A star-spangled VF-25 around Turn 1 will grab headlines. But if the new bits do what the wind tunnel says, Haas might just give the COTA grandstands something better: two cars in the top 10 on Sunday.
