Magnussen racing with 'no fear' after last-minute F1® lifeline
Tuesday, 5 April 2022
The 29-year-old Dane was thrown a lifeline.
Haas F1® Team driver Kevin Magnussen is taking a relaxed approach to his shock return to Formula 1® after being sacked by the same team less than 18 months ago.
The 29-year-old Dane, who finished a career-best second for McLaren on his F1® debut in Australia in 2014, was dumped along with Romain Grosjean by the American outfit at the end of the 2020 season, only to be thrown a lifeline when the team parted ways with Nikita Mazepin just two weeks before the opening Grand Prix of 2022.
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Magnussen finished a remarkable fifth in the Bahrain season-opener for Haas, which didn’t score a single world championship point last year and came home ninth in Saudi Arabia a week later.
Speaking to the Australian Grand Prix Corporation’s In the Fast Lane podcast ahead of the return of F1® at Albert Park this weekend, Magnussen says he's approaching 2022 with a 'nothing to lose' attitude.
"I'm way more relaxed – because this opportunity came so surprisingly, I can't help feeling so unbelievably lucky to be where I am," Magnussen said.
"Haas built a hell of a car this year that, if we're lucky, we might get a podium at some point.
"I really had got to terms with the fact that I wasn't going to be driving F1 anymore. Now, because I'm back, I can race with no fear of losing this opportunity. I can give it all that I've got, and if I mess it up, I don't care."
Magnussen, whose father Jan raced in F1® from 1995-98, is driving alongside second-year F1® racer Mick Schumacher at Haas. Magnussen feels his partnership with the 23-year-old Schumacher, son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, can see Haas fight at the front of the midfield all season.
"I'm pretty excited about working with Mick – he's a super-nice guy and he's great to have in the team because he's someone who works really hard, someone the whole team likes to work for," Magnussen said.
"He's been very open, he's keen to learn, he's been asking questions. He's obviously a super-talented driver, he really deserves to be in Formula One. Last year he had a teammate who wasn't really pushing him, so I think it's great how we're now in this position where we can push each other.
"Hopefully we can both start scoring points soon and get this team in a great position in the constructors' (championship)."
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