Kevin Magnussen felt the pace of his car was just not there during Qualifying for the United States Grand Prix, with the Dane ending up slowest of everyone on Saturday afternoon.
The Haas F1 Team driver felt the grip levels during the session were not as he would have liked, which meant he struggled for pace, with the tyre set he was using feeling used rather than new.
“Something wasn’t right,” said Magnussen. “I mean, we haven’t had it right all weekend, but suddenly I didn’t have any grip at all and I have no idea why.
“I don’t have any answers for why I was the slowest car on track. It’s very disappointing. It felt like the tyres weren’t even new. It felt like a used set – it was new, but the feeling was very bad.”
Magnussen apologised to Sergio Perez for getting in his way during Q1, admitting it was a honest mistake, and he accepted the penalty that he was handed, though it won’t mean much in the long game.
“And then, of course, I got in the way of Sergio,” said Magnussen. “He was on an out lap and I didn’t let him through, so I can understand if he’s pretty angry with that, but I can only say it was a mistake.”
