Haas' sixth-place finish on its debut at the Australian Grand Prix "resonated in a very positive way" in America, according to team boss Guenther Steiner.
Romain Grosjean's superb drive in Melbourne gave Haas a memorable start to its tenure in Formula One, a result team boss Gene Haas said took five years to accomplish in NASCAR. This year Haas became the first American team to join the F1 grid in 30 years, while the nation has had just two drivers, Scott Speed and Alexander Rossi, compete in a grand prix since Michael Andretti in 1993.
America is seen as a key market for Formula One by Bernie Ecclestone, with one U.S. race on the current calendar and at least one more rumoured for future. Steiner thinks the team's first result made people sit up and take notice at home.
"I think it resonated in a very positive way in all of racing in America," Steiner said. "Even those who don't follow Formula One considered it a big achievement for a new team to finish in sixth place and to be from America, which hasn't had a presence in Formula One in 30 years."
Haas' limited running through the winter and in the build-up to the Australian Grand Prix, coupled with a below-par qualifying which saw both cars finish 19th and 20th, made its debut result more remarkable. Steiner says that is down to the quality of staff Haas employed ahead of the season.
"We chose good, quality people. Nobody gets down in adversity. Everybody gets up. They are working on the solution, not on the problem. They work together because they are professionals and they know they can get it done together as a team. It all comes down to the quality of people, and I think our quality is pretty high."
The other Haas car had a less emphatic result in Melbourne, with Esteban Gutierrez being involved in a massive collision with McLaren's Fernando Alonso. Steiner confirms the Mexican driver will need a new chassis for Bahrain.
"Some of the parts, for example the chassis, were sent back to Europe to be checked and fixed because we can't do it onsite in Bahrain. We have enough spare parts to build up another chassis, so we will use that. Then the chassis that is repaired will be sent to Bahrain via air to serve as our spare. The guys will have to work day and night to get to Bahrain, but it's all doable. Our spare quantity is down, but we have enough to get going again, so we will just keep on working."