Haas to become TGR Haas F1 in 2026 as Toyota alliance steps up a gear
Haas is getting a new name — and a bigger ally. From 2026, the American squad will enter as TGR Haas F1, a rebrand that formalizes Toyota Gazoo Racing’s move to title partner and signals a deeper technical and operational tie-up after their first year working together.
MoneyGram bows out after three seasons on the sidepods, with Toyota taking top billing and bringing its factory motorsport identity to the grid. It’s not a works team in the old-school sense, but the intent is clear: Toyota’s competition arm is invested, active and putting people and tools into Haas at a level that goes well beyond a logo.
The relationship was born in late 2024 as a “burgeoning technical partnership.” In 2025 it matured into something more structured: Toyota helped commission and develop a new simulator at Haas’ Banbury base, plugged into the team’s R&D projects, and — crucially — rolled out an aggressive Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) program that Haas had never run at this scale.
That TPC effort did real work. Fourteen days across Silverstone, Paul Ricard, Imola, Mugello and Fuji gave Haas engineers mileage and data while opening the door for Toyota-backed talent to get a genuine feel for modern F1 machinery. Ryo Hirakawa, Sho Tsuboi, Ritomo Miyata and Kamui Kobayashi all turned laps, an unmistakable sign of the pipeline Toyota wants to build and the kind of program Haas is happy to host.
It’s no accident the initiative is being rebranded as the TGR Haas Driver Development Programme for 2026. The personnel component — not just drivers, but engineers and mechanics — is central to this partnership. Haas has long operated lean. Toyota can supply depth: more hands, more experience, more structure.
“It’s naturally a privilege to deepen our relationship with TGR through this new title partnership,” said team principal Ayao Komatsu. “Our working relationship to-date has been everything we hoped it would be. It’s been evidenced through our successful TPC running this season but there’s been so much more going on behind the scenes too – including the development and installation of the simulator at our Banbury facility for 2026.
“The cultivation of personnel, all working collaboratively between Haas F1 Team and TGR, has benefited us greatly and that’s something that will only increase as our partnership matures. We’re excited to further grow with the likes of our driver program too, and it’s been encouraging to see the depth of talent TGR is backing in that process.”
Toyota’s chairman was equally bullish, framing the collaboration as a platform for the “next generation” to break through. “Throughout our challenges in the 2025 season, I witnessed young TGR drivers and engineers begin to believe in their own potential and set their sights on even greater dreams,” he said. “By taking our partnership with Haas another step forward next year, TGR’s ‘People, Product, Pipeline’ mantra will accelerate in a way we have never seen before. The time has come for the next generation to take their first steps toward the world stage. Together with Gene Haas, Ayao, and everyone at TGR Haas F1 Team, we will build both a culture and a team for the future. Toyota is now truly on the move.”
Strip away the corporate speak and the picture is straightforward: Haas gets infrastructure and people power it didn’t have, Toyota gets a branded shop window and an F1 ecosystem to develop talent within. For a team that’s fought to punch above its weight since joining the grid, attaching itself to TGR’s resources and processes is a timely play as the sport turns toward 2026’s reset.
The branding shift lands alongside a tidy bit of housekeeping for next year. Haas has confirmed its initial pre-season plan for the VF-26: a digital livery launch on January 23, followed by private running in Barcelona from January 26–30. Expect the simulator — Toyota-aided and Banbury-installed — to be central to that build-up as the team tries to compress learning curves and carry momentum from a constructive 2025 testing calendar.
There’s a temptation to call this the opening stanza of a Toyota return, but that’s reading tea leaves. What’s on the table today is a title partnership with real technical teeth, a clear driver and personnel pathway, and a name — TGR Haas F1 — that tells you who’s in the room when decisions get made. For Haas, that’s meaningful. For Toyota, it’s a statement that its motorsport arm wants a seat at the sport’s top table again, without overpromising what’s next.
Either way, the paddock will notice. In 2026, the smallest independent on the grid won’t look or feel so small anymore.
