Haas F1 Team‘s Kevin Magnussen wants a “clear picture of what temperatures we need” in the tyres ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.
This is the second weekend teams have been able to use the new pink-walled HyperSoft tyres, the first being last time out at the Monaco Grand Prix. Whilst both Monaco and Canada are run on street circuits, and both have similar temperatures, the Dane seems to be struggling more than last time out. He reached thirteenth in Free Practice Two with the Hypersoft tyres, and was nearly three and a half tenths slower than team-mate Romain Grosjean‘s fastest time. This is much slower than at the same point in the weekend in Monaco, when Magnussen was almost two tenths faster than Grosjean.
This difference, he says, is related to the team’s understanding of the tyres. Speaking on Friday, Magnussen said that they “didn’t quite understand the tyres“, and that the team are “still learning” ahead of qualifying.
“I had an okay day. I think FP1 was a bit difficult,” said Magnussen.
“We didn’t quite understand the tyres. It improved a little bit in FP2. We’re still learning, and we still need to analyse more for tomorrow.
“We’ll find some answers tonight about the tires. The tires are the big subject here in Montreal. I think if we can find some answers with that and get a clear picture of what temperatures we need and how it laps – that’s going to be the most important thing.”