In his second season with Haas F1 Team, Kevin Magnussen has single-handedly moved into 6th place in the constructors’ championship. Thanks to a 5th place finish in Bahrain and 6th place in Barcelona, the Dane sits 9th in the drivers’ standings. Before the Spanish Grand Prix, he talked with ŚwiatWyścigów.pl’s Roksana Ćwik.
Kevin, in Bahrain you matched your second-best result in Formula One, how do you feel with it?
It was nice to have a good result and put some points on the board. We were unlucky in Australia, so we needed those points.
Most teams would bring a lot of development for the first European race of the season. What do you have in your sleeves?
Unfortunately we haven’t been able to bring any upgrades to Barcelona, so our car remained the same as in the previous race, but hopefully we will bring something for the next one. We just have to leave with it and while I don’t think we have a bad car, if other teams are going to make big improvements, it will put us a little bit behind – in which case we will have to get though it and try to score some points anyway.
And what those upgrades would be?
It would be a number of changes, addressing a number of different areas of the car. Hopefully all these changes will work well together and bring the aerodynamic benefit.
Some drivers have said that the race in Baku should have been red flagged due to the conditions and long clean-up time. What was your view of it?
Yeah, it was difficult to keep temperature in the tyres behind the safety car but I guess it was the same for everyone.
The changes to the 2019 technical regulations were just announced. Do you think the measures taken to improve overtaking will bring the desired effect?
I haven’t looked into the details yet, so I have no idea.
During the press conference there was a shared desire to remove DRS in the future. What do you think of this system?
Of course it helps with overtaking but sometimes using DRS you can just drive past someone and it’s not exciting for the fans. If you could race close and have real fights and proper overtaking manoeuvres going into the corners, rather than just passes down the straight, it would be more exciting. Perhaps the new changes will allow that, but for now we need DRS.
So if the DRS wouldn’t work, it would make overtaking someone almost impossible?
Yes, because it is too difficult to get on the back of another car. You lose a lot of downforce this way, so you can’t get close enough to make a pass, but with DRS you don’t have to be such close to make it work. But again, to have exciting racing we need to have the fights in the corners, not just driving past each other on the straights.
Melbourne was a very disappointing race for you and the team, how did you receive it?
It was tough but you get over it and move on. Luckily we were able to score points at the next race, so it made things a little bit easier.
Some journalists have already pencilled you as a team leader. Do you feel as such?
I try to do the best job for the team and help develop the car as much as I can. I feel like it’s going in a good direction.
Driving for an American team, what do you think of the prospects of having a second race in USA?
I love America and enjoy being there. I think it would be great to have more races in America, especially for us as an American team.
A few days before the race you posted a picture of going fishing with your brother. Is it your kind of relax?
On this day we went fishing, but it’s not something I do often. To be honest, it was a throwback picture from a year ago, but it was such a good day that I decided to post it again.
So how do you relax after a demanding race?
It depends on where I am in the world and how is the weather – if it would be a nice day in Denmark, then I would jump in the boat and be in the water, do some water-skiing or wakeboarding, maybe have a barbecue with my family and friends. The best way to relax for me is to be with people that I care about.
How the on-track Kevin Magnussen differ from the one off the track?
On the track I fight hard and I hope that people like it. I give my best and try to do everything in order to achieve the best possible result and sometimes you have to put your elbows out. I always regret it when I get a penalty because I clearly overstepped the limit but I try to go as close to it as possible.
After the Baku race and your fight with Pierre Gasly, the Reuters journalist have put some of your words out of context. Does that make you angry?
Unfortunately it’s the way the media works today. The media is broken and it’s very difficult to get away with speaking your mind because if you do your words will be twisted and there will be stories angled in a completely wrong way. Therefore sometimes it is easier to just close down and not say anything.
