From Haas to Headlines: Steiner’s New F1 Media Role

Gunther Steiner embraces his thriving media consultancy role, offering insights and humor that continue to captivate F1 fans worldwide.

Gunther Steiner may no longer be Haas F1’s team principal for a year now, but his almost constant presence in the paddock as a highly regarded consultant for several television networks, including Canal+, continues to delight his fans.

The character that is Steiner still has a knack for delivering memorable lines. But does he miss the competitive side of F1? That’s the question Ouest France put to him.

“If I didn’t attend the races, I’d miss certain people because I have many friends there, but I’m there regularly. I did about half the race weekends this year, mostly as a media consultant. Do I miss racing? Sometimes, yes. But do I miss the days when I worked from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., with poor results and tough questions to answer before Monday morning? No.”

Steiner explains how he came to work with so many media outlets.

“They all asked me! Strange, isn’t it? I thought I’d take a year off because I also have my own businesses, but I was approached immediately. I said yes to one network, then another… Today, I work with Australian, Austrian, German, and French channels! What more could I ask for? It’s very interesting. I get to see different sides of this world and, as always, I try to learn. When you work in Formula 1, you don’t really see how hard journalists and media professionals work. Now I have the opportunity to work with them, and if I didn’t enjoy it, I certainly wouldn’t do it. Next year, I’ll keep going. I see it this way: I love Formula 1, and if someone calls me to join a project, I’d be happy to take part. But I don’t want to just ‘take a job’ to stay in Formula 1.”

The Austrian-born Italian has built his consulting career on strong relationships with journalists.

“I got along well with most of them, yes. Maybe things went badly with one or two, no more. If you’re honest with me and listen to my answers—because I never lie—everything goes smoothly. I think many people respected me because I was always as honest as I could be. And if I couldn’t tell the truth about a specific story, I still didn’t lie! If I can’t talk, I say nothing, but I don’t mislead people. So yes, I’ve always had a good relationship with journalists, and I still do today.”