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Haas' Kevin Magnussen has revealed that his neck could not take the G force at the new Jeddah Corniche Circuit. The driver raced in Saudi Arabia for the first time, finishing in P9 with a hurting neck.
The American team's comeback in 2022 has been legendary after Kevin Magnussen returned to F1 after Nikita Mazepin's contract was terminated by the team just a few days earlier.
The Dane finished P5 in Bahrain's season opener, proving that he still has it despite being absent from the sport for a year. However, the driver struggled considerably the following weekend in Jeddah as he never drove on F1's newest and fastest street circuit the previous year.
The Haas driver's neck was unable to deal with the intense G-forces that are experienced on the circuit, affecting his performance in Q3.
Magnussen talked about his neck and the bizarre fix Haas employed to aid him:
"The neck is nowhere. I hope it will come back soon. We put these cups on the side so I could lean. It is what it is, I've got to get stronger but we scored two points, so [I'm] super happy. I really love this track, it's such a great track to drive. It's just so exciting, exhilarating. With the speeds we do here, you really feel like a racing driver. I love it."
Haas' Kevin Magnussen claimed luck was not on his side in Jeddah
Despite recording two consecutive points finishes in 2022, the Dane was not entirely happy with his performance in Jeddah. Magnussen started on the hard compound tires with the intention of a longer stint than the rest of the field. However, a safety car on lap 17 allowed those on the medium compound tires around him to get a free pit stop.
Speaking after the race, Kevin Magnussen said:
“We didn’t have luck on our side. We used it all up in Bahrain. The worst thing that could have happened to us, happened, because we started on the opposite strategy, on the hard tires, and almost everyone else was on the medium. The worst thing was a safety car on lap 16 or 17, and it came on lap 16, a really bad time, so to still get two points is very good.”
While Haas' form in 2022 looks incredible, only time will tell if the American team is able to rise through to the grid to cement themselves as one of the strongest teams in the midfield.
