Kevin Magnussen, Hungarian GP 2019
© Haas F1-Team / LAT
Former team driver Kevin Magnussen is not confident that Haas will improve dramatically when the all-new 2022 regulations come into effect next year.
After losing his place in Formula 1, the 28-year-old Dane currently drives US sports cars but will be a works Peugeot driver in the World Endurance Championship next year.
In June Magnussen stood in for an injured regular at Indycar.
He told Ekstra Bladet that he wasn’t even particularly interested in going back to the Formula 1 paddock to visit old friends.
“If someone pays me to come, I’ll probably stop by,” he said. “It’s just not that I have to be there.
“I still talk to some mechanics. And every now and then I send Gunther (Steiner) a rude emoji, ”smiled Magnussen.
In his wake in Haas, rookies Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin are fighting at the very back of the grid in what is essentially the same car that Magnussen drove in 2020.
When asked how he’s doing watching other drivers race in his old cockpit, Magnussen replied: “I almost don’t want to say it.
“But I feel sorry for them, even if I’m very grateful for what the team has given me. I never thought of saying anything bad about Haas.
“I think it’s a shame and they deserve better,” he added.
Haas’ progress stalled completely in 2021 when the Ferrari-affiliated American team decided instead to channel all resources and focus on an entirely new car for 2022, developed at a separate plant in Maranello.
“I hope they get the jump they need,” said Magnussen.
“But it has been very clear in the last two seasons, including this one, that the team has lost too much focus on looking ahead.
“The problem is that the big teams can bet as much as they can on the next season and at the same time concentrate on the current season.”
(GMM)
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