Kevin Magnussen is hopeful that the strong pace he had during Friday free practice at the Red Bull Ring correlates into a strong qualifying for the Haas F1 Team.
The Dane had a good day in Austria on Friday as he set the twelfth fastest time of the first session before improving to seventh fastest in the second session, the best of the rest behind the leading three teams – Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team, Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull Racing – albeit 1.108 seconds down on the outright pace set by Lewis Hamilton.
“I’m happy with our Friday,” said Magnussen. “It’s a fun track to drive and the car’s handling well. I’m looking forward to tomorrow to see if our pace is representative for qualifying as well. Fingers crossed.”
Romain Grosjean was almost half a second back on Magnussen in first practice, finishing down in sixteenth, but like the Dane, he found time in the afternoon session, finishing tenth fastest and within two-tenths of his team-mate.
“It’s been a good day,” insisted Grosjean. “We had a puncture this morning but a good afternoon. We’ve inherited a few things on the car, so there’s some work to be done on it tonight. Overall, though, it’s a pretty good feeling.”
