Haas has introduced it is going to half methods with its longest-serving driver, Kevin Magnussen, on the finish of this season.
With Nico Hulkenberg already as a consequence of depart the workforce and be part of Sauber subsequent yr, the information means Haas can have an all-new driver line-up for 2025. It has beforehand introduced Ferrari Driver Academy member Oliver Bearman as one half of its line-up.
Magnussen has pushed for Haas in seven of the final eight seasons. He was beforehand dropped on the finish of his first, four-year stint when the workforce opted to herald two rookie drivers, and the sponsorship they attracted for 2021, having run into monetary hassle the yr earlier than.
Nonetheless Magnussen made a shock return to the workforce in 2022 as a alternative for a kind of drivers, Nikita Mazepin, who was dropped on account of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which led the workforce to cancel its sponsorship cope with his father’s firm. Magnussen starred in his first race again for the workforce, claiming a worthwhile fifth place within the Bahrain Grand Prix.
He has fared much less properly in opposition to Hulkenberg over the past two seasons. Nonetheless workforce principal Ayao Komatsu, who changed Guenther Steiner in the beginning of the yr, expressed his gratitude for Magnussen’s service.
“I’d prefer to thank Kevin for every little thing he’s given us as a workforce, each on and off the observe,” mentioned Komatsu. “He’s actually been a bedrock of our driver line-up through the years.
“No person’s pushed extra races for us and we’ve had some memorable highlights collectively – not least a outstanding fifth place end on the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2022 when Kevin returned to begin his second spell with the workforce. He wasn’t anticipating to be driving a Components 1 automobile that weekend, however he put in a outstanding efficiency that was an incredible increase to your entire organisation and as soon as once more showcased his personal abilities behind the wheel.”
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Whereas Magnussen is but to substantiate his future plans, Komatsu hopes to influence him to proceed working with them. “With Kevin’s particular relationship with the workforce, I’m hoping we will discover a method to hold working collectively in some capability. We are able to hopefully outline that within the close to future, however his intensive expertise in Components 1 and information of our working operations are undoubtedly of worth in our ongoing development and improvement.”
Magnussen mentioned he’s “proud to have raced for such a terrific workforce of individuals these previous couple of years.”
“Particularly I’d prefer to thank Gene Haas for his dedication to me, notably in bringing me again as soon as once more in 2022 after I thought, at the moment no less than, my time in Components 1 had ended.”
Magnussen is the third driver on this yr’s area to seek out himself and not using a drive for subsequent yr, becoming a member of Carlos Sainz Jnr and Esteban Ocon. The latter has been tipped as a goal for Haas, however the workforce is just not anticipated to substantiate the id of Bearman’s workforce mate imminently.
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