Magnussen wants to avoid F1 reserve role

Jamie Woodhouse
Kevin Magnussen

Kevin Magnussen has options to stay in F1 but misses being competitive.

Kevin Magnussen says he has options on the table to extend his Formula 1 career, but doesn’t fancy being a reserve driver once again.

Haas have confirmed that both Magnussen and Romain Grosjean will be dropped from their driver line-up at the end of the 2020 season.

But Magnussen revealed that he does have options on the table to remain in Formula 1, but misses being competitive having not featured on the podium since his first Formula 1 race back at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix.

“There is – and were – options in Formula 1,” he said ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

“I had options to stay in Formula 1 but I miss winning and I miss really being competitive and that has played a big part in how I look and pursue my future.

“I wouldn’t stay in Formula 1 at any costs. I want to be competitive and I want to feel like I am going somewhere with my career, that I am progressing.

“I have spent seven years effectively in Formula 1 trying to pursue success and I feel I have to complete that. I don’t want to take a step back.

“There were options but I think there were options outside Formula 1 which were interesting.”

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And while Magnussen didn’t rule out a return to being a reserve driver, the role he held at McLaren in 2015, his priority is to find a competitive drive in F1 or somewhere else.

“It depends. I don’t know, I have had a year as a reserve driver and I wasn’t racing anything besides my reserve driver role in 2015, when I was McLaren’s reserve driver and that was tough,” he explained.

“I am a race driver and I need to be racing. I have to be racing to stay motivated and happy. That would be first priority, to get a competitive race drive somewhere.”

Magnussen joined the Haas team back in 2017 but it’s safe to say that over the past few seasons the American outfit have been on a sharp decline.

The Dane would score 20 points in the 2019 Drivers’ Championship, leaving him P16 in the final standings, but 2020 has been an even tougher campaign with Magnussen having only one point after 12 races.

He’s currently P19 in the standings, one point behind team-mate Grosjean.

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