"He was extremely open"- Haas driver praises Gunther Steiner's 'no bullsh*tting' attitude citing 2020 F1 season incident

F1 Grand Prix of Italy - Previews
Kevin Magnussen of Denmark and Haas F1 attends the drivers press conference during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Italy at Autodromo Nazionale Monza on September 08, 2022 in Monza, Italy. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Haas driver Kevin Magnussen has praised Guenther Steiner's straightforward and bold management style. The Italian team boss is known to be blunt with his words, with the media, his team, and even his drivers.

K-Mag, who has a rich history with Haas, appreciated Steiner's honesty even when he communicated bad news. He told GP Racing magazine:

“Guenther is very honest. He can be trusted in good times and bad. I’ll never forget when they told me they didn’t have a seat for me after 2020, he was extremely open and honest about the big picture. He wasn’t bullsh*tting. He just explained things."

Kevin Magnussen, who also drove for Renault in 2016, made a comparison of the treatment he received there and at Haas:

“[Elsewhere] I was always told such and such a thing then [the team] acting in a completely different way. Back in the Renault days they would say ‘No, no problem’ and everything, and I would see the agents and the fathers of other drivers coming to see the team up and go ‘Hey, I know what’s going on, so why don’t you tell me so I can predict something else?'”

The Dane had to leave F1 after he was told that Haas couldn't provide him with a seat for 2021. The driver and Romain Grosjean were ditched by the team for two rookies (Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin). However, K-Mag only spent a year out of F1, only to be called back by his former team 11 days before the new season began.

He performed incredibly well for Haas in the first half of 2022. The driver has been sensational for the team, catapulting them to a P8 this year.


Haas boss describes staff difficulties ahead of the 2023 season

Haas boss Guenther Steiner has revealed that the outfit will not be able to rotate employees to maintain team efficiency next year. Steiner believes that managing 24 races is not going to be an easy task.

As reported by Planet F1, the Italian boss pointed out the issues about to arise for his team with the record-breaking 24 race calendar next season:

“It is getting very difficult logistically, 24 races. On the human level, it is getting more difficult. You would need to make the step to change staff but maybe that only works when you go to 30 races because then you have the income to be able to afford that. We couldn’t rotate people. We could rotate one or two people in the mechanics, but we couldn’t rotate the whole crew.”

Haas has had a decent year in 2022 compared to where they were in 2021. The team, however, is looking for a second driver to race alongside K-Mag. They are not completely sure of Mick Schumacher's talent and will hawk-eye his progress in the upcoming races.

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