It was just over a year ago that Autosport paid an exclusive visit to the nascent Haas Formula 1 team's base in Charlotte, USA to report on the progress made since machine tool magnate Gene Haas had been granted one of F1's vacant grid slots in April 2014. As outlined at the time, the team intended sourcing non-listed parts from Ferrari, having entered into a technical arrangement with the Italian team.

The visit marked the first time team principal Guenther Steiner, he of Ford World Rally Championship, Jaguar Racing F1 and Red Bull NASCAR fame, revealed exactly how the co-operation would work. He stressed that the 'Haas way' depended upon the team's interpretation of the F1 regulations, which demand that teams own the intellectual property to certain (listed*) parts, but are free to source the balance elsewhere.

Five races into its maiden season, the first American team to hit the grid in 30 years lays sixth in the title hunt with 22 points, ahead of such as Force India, McLaren and Renault - a maiden season performance that shades every other new team over the past two decades (at least), including Toyota.