“The car is just doing what I want it to do” – Haas team principal Guenther Steiner is pleased with how quickly Kevin Magnussen has settled in as they target a top 4 finish in the Constructors Standings.
Haas had a disastrous outing last season, as they finished rock-bottom of the pile. To add salt to their wounds, the Russian invasion of Ukraine forced their hand to fire Nikita Mazepin and let go of the sponsorship by his dad’s Uralkali company.
This would have meant things going worse for the American team, but in returned Kevin Magnussen as a replacement, and Haas is now performing at a level not seen in a long time.
Kevin Magnussen returned to Haas after missing 2021
Their maverick boss Guenther Steiner is extremely delighted with how Magnussen has settled in, and how pleased he is with the car he and Mick Schumacher are driving. This has convinced Steiner they could finish P4 this season, ahead of the likes of McLaren, Alpine, and Alfa Romeo.
“Kevin didn’t drive an F1 car for a year, comes here, has never driven here, has a miserable Friday we did three timed laps. Then he goes out there and does this time in qualifying and couldn’t do a better lap because of his neck. And in the race he said ‘the car is just doing what I want it to do’.
“Obviously, there’s always things to improve. But he said it’s really nice to drive if you’re so competitive, he said ‘I can challenge all the time.’ So the car is pretty good and then it’s down to having a good week and finding the right set-up and getting the best out of it.
“If we get the best out of it, I would say we are at the front end of the midfield.”
