Former Haas F1 and current Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kevin Magnussen was a surprise guest in the pit lane when practice for the 105th Indianapolis 500 began on Tuesday.
When the Dane did a daunting run to fifth in class at the IMSA race in Mid-Ohio on Sunday, he decided to lift his spirits by heading west to Indianapolis Motor Speedway to see the sights on display and raw Enjoy speeds.
“I got the chance to go from Mid-Ohio to Indianapolis and see some Indy 500 exercises, which was great,” he told RACER. “I was always very open to wanting to drive an IndyCar one day. I was standing in the middle of the pit lane, you know, only five or ten meters from the cars that go at a speed of almost 400 kilometers per hour. With only half a meter of wall between me and the cars. And then you see these cars go at full speed and don’t even take off at Turn 1. It’s definitely something I have to try one day. “
McLaren wins, new wind tunnel convinced Norris of the title potential
F1 open to Monaco changes
Ferrari “almost a real threat” – Sainz
Magnussen is no stranger to driving at over 200 mph in Formula 1, where the long straights in Mexico and Monza allow impressive top speeds. But at Indy, where those speeds are not lost when braking on a slow corner, the danger and attraction caught the 28-year-old’s imagination.
“It’s just crazy. It’s a really mystical place, ”he continued. “Because you know that they are going at full speed around the lap, you know, at least in the qualifying trim and if they are in clean air in the race, they do that too. But even though they are in full swing the whole lap, there is so much technology that goes into a good lap. It’s all these little inputs, and there’s a lot more in the details than driving a racing car on a normal road circuit. You have to be so precise with your inputs in the car.
“I say I’ve never ridden an Oval or Indianapolis, but that’s what I take from it. And it all happens almost 400 kilometers per hour and it’s just fascinating, and they also run against each other. It’s at this speed and with walls that are close to the track. It’s pretty phenomenal. “
The combination of massive speed, close proximity to the walls and the complexity of fast laps in Indy has already inspired Magnussen. Barry Cantrell / Motorsport Images
The Ganassi team gave Magnussen the entire Indy 500 experience with an in-depth look at how the defending champions work at IndyCar’s largest event.
“It’s interesting just to see from the inside how they do it on the IndyCar team,” he said. “After the first day of testing, I had to attend the debriefing. That was great and there are a lot of new things that I have never heard of that they talk about. You know, setting up a car for the Indianapolis 500 is very different from setting it up for everything else I’ve done. So just interesting and cool to hear that and really get a look inside. “
Magnussen missed seeing former Haas teammate Romain Grosjean take pole position and finish second at the Indy Grand Prix last weekend before returning to France. But he’s been keeping an eye on what’s going on from Mid-Ohio, cheering on Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing drivers from afar.
“I drove this guy as a team-mate for four years and I know him very well,” he said of Grosjean. “We had some really hot battles on the track and it’s cool to see that he does well, is ready to go and is already on pole and hopefully some race wins. I know what a good driver this guy is, so I’m not really surprised. But still good to see. “
As soon as he finishes IMSA’s WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season in the Cadillac DPi-VR No. 01, which he shares with Renger van der Zande, Magnussen will be part of Peugeot’s new hypercar program for 2022 for the FIA World Endurance Championship directed. He hopes to find a time in the near future when a return to America and an opportunity in the NTT IndyCar series will become a reality.
“You have to remember that I’m still a motorsport fan,” he said. “I just love racing and IndyCar is one of those types of racing that I find really cool and interesting. I would like to try. I’m very excited about what I’m going to do now with Peugeot and at Le Mans, but you know, I’m a young man and there are still many years in me. There are a lot of things I would like to do before I hang up my helmet. And the Indy 500 is absolutely one of them. “
The post Indy 500 “definitely something I have to try” – Magnussen first appeared on monter-une-startup.
