The usual caveats applied when it came to Haas' pre-season testing pace - or so it seemed at the time. After it spent last year's Formula 1 test in Bahrain doing nothing except running at full fuel loads to quell its greedy streak with tyres, Haas rocked up in the opening race with a good level of pace and had ensconced itself in the midfield fight over sixth in the championship.
It was assumed that the same had come to play this year. At no point did the car ever rise off the bottom of the timing boards; Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman spent three days diligently logging the laps with the anticipation that the performance would come when fuel was taken out in Australia.
