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Kevin Magnussen Assists Nico Hulkenberg with “Deserved” Penalties
During Saturday’s Miami Formula 1 sprint race, Kevin Magnussen found himself resorting to what he described as “stupid tactics” to aid his Haas teammate Nico Hulkenberg in securing valuable points. The 31-year-old Dane incurred three time penalties, totaling 25 seconds, for impeding Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and Yuki Tsunoda of Red Bull Racing in their battle for eighth place, ultimately finishing 18th and last on track.
Magnussen openly acknowledged that the penalties were justified, admitting to employing questionable tactics to support Hulkenberg’s race. He revealed that earlier in the race, he had gained positions and was in eighth place, effectively defending against Hamilton with the assistance of DRS (drag reduction) from Hulkenberg in seventh. However, when Hulkenberg cut the chicane, Magnussen lost DRS and consequently became vulnerable to Hamilton’s advances.
Reflecting on the incident, Magnussen stated, “I had to play the game again…I had to just create the gap like I did in Jeddah and start using these stupid tactics which I don’t like doing but at the end of the day I did my job as a team player and Nico scored his points because I got that gap for him.”
Despite Magnussen’s maneuvers, Hamilton accepted his explanation, attributing the incident to hard racing. He expressed his appreciation for the competitive nature of the race, emphasizing his enjoyment of racing under intense circumstances.
This is not the first time Magnussen has resorted to such tactics to benefit Hulkenberg. In the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in March, he incurred two 10-second penalties before strategically holding off pursuing drivers to create a sufficient gap for Hulkenberg to pit and secure Haas’s first point of the season.
Currently, Haas sits seventh in the standings with seven points from six race weekends, a significant improvement from their last-place finish in the 2023 season. Hulkenberg, who is set to join Sauber at the end of the year, has contributed six of those points, further underscoring the impact of Magnussen’s selfless actions in supporting his teammate’s success on the track.
