As a child, Laura Müller dreamed of becoming a Formula 1 driver — inspired by Michael Schumacher. “I always watched Formula 1 on Sundays,” the German said in an August 2025 interview with auto motor und sport. Back then few took her seriously, and without a clear way into karting, a racing career remained a dream.
Still, Müller worked her way into Formula 1 and became the sport’s first female race engineer in 2025. She is the main technical and operational link between French driver Esteban Ocon and his Haas car, earning the role through determination, hard work, talent and meticulous attention to detail.
The journey began in Australia. At 18, after finishing high school, Müller moved to Australia unsure of her next step. “I thought to myself: If I can’t become a Formula 1 driver, I’ll just work in Formula 1.” That decision set a focused career path.
After studying mechanical engineering, Müller gained practical experience in 2014 through an internship in the DTM (German Touring Car Masters). She then worked in endurance racing, the DTM, the International Formula Series and the Brazilian Stock Car Championship.
In 2022 she made a concrete move toward F1 by applying to then-McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl. Although she impressed, internal restructuring blocked the hire. Haas signed her instead as a performance engineer, a role focused on optimizing car setup and on-track performance.
Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu, impressed by her work ethic, gave her the big break: since 2025 she has been Komatsu’s closest technical contact, making strategic decisions during races, inspecting tracks, analysing data and determining car setup. Despite her high profile in F1, she prefers to stay out of the limelight and concentrate on the job.
“My responsibility is to make the decisions for my car,” Müller said. “I receive all the information from all the departments: from the aerodynamics people, the tyre people, the performance engineer, the vehicle dynamics. I then try to translate this information into a decision. I simply take a lot of decisions. And many of these decisions have to be taken very quickly.”
Her decisions are rarely spontaneous; they are prepared in advance to cover likely scenarios because emergencies leave no time for lengthy deliberation. “A decision is always better than no decision. And if it’s wrong, then it was wrong. But I can only do that because I already have a considerable amount of experience in motorsport,” she added.
Ocon praised her in spring 2025 after the early races of their first season together: “It’s great working with Laura. She’s truly an outstanding engineer. The number of hours she invests is very, very impressive.”
Their first season together had mixed results. Ocon, who joined Haas from Alpine at the start of 2025, scored 38 points across 24 races and finished 15th of 20 drivers. Rookie teammate Oliver Bearman finished three points and two positions ahead.
Haas expects improvement this season aided by new regulations. With the combustion engine and battery each contributing roughly half of a car’s power, energy management and recovery during a lap — via braking, lifting off the throttle or downshifting — become crucial. That makes the coordination between driver and race engineer more intensive and increases Müller’s responsibilities, a development that plays to her strengths.
Müller will also receive a special honour at the season opener in Melbourne: Turn 6, the “Marina” at Albert Park, will be named after her alongside Red Bull strategist Hannah Schmitz. The dedication is part of the “In Her Corner” campaign by Australian engineers and the Australian Grand Prix Corporation for International Women’s Day, aimed at inspiring young people, especially girls, to pursue technical careers.
“To be a part of this acknowledgement so early on in my Formula 1 career is an honour, and I hope it motivates girls and young adults to pursue a career in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics),” Müller said on F1’s official website. “It’s important to recognize women’s accomplishments in motorsport so far, and it’s great to be alongside Hannah for this.”
Müller aims to keep inspiring young women as she continues to sit on the pit wall, calmly making quick, informed decisions to help deliver results for Haas.
This article was originally published in German.