Kevin Magnussen admits the Haas F1 Team is taking every race as it comes as they continue to seek answers to why the VF-19 is not able to maximise the performance from the Pirelli tyres in 2019 in race conditions.
Only twice has Magnussen broken into the points in 2019, which is even more disappointing for the Dane on the back of the performance often shown during Qualifying where Q3 is often reached, with the team currently languishing down in ninth place in the Constructors’ Championship after the first eight races.
Pirelli is bringing the same three compounds to this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix as they did to the French Grand Prix last weekend, with Haas struggling again on race day as Magnussen could only finish seventeenth, but he does not know where they will be at the Red Bull Ring knowing how up and down the performances throughout the year have been so far.
“I guess there will be a little bit of a carryover, but the tracks are slightly different, even though we’re using the same tyres,” said Magnussen. “It’s not like we can carry over everything.
“I don’t think we can say we understand the full picture yet. We’re very much taking each race as it comes and trying to get the best out of each opportunity.”
Magnussen says it has always been entertaining when he races at the Red Bull Ring, with the track offering a few different options to overtake, and he goes there with the memories of a strong result at the track in 2018 when he took fifth place, just behind team-mate Romain Grosjean.
“The Red Bull Ring is a good little circuit,” said Magnussen. “It’s a little bit unique. It’s a very small area. It kind of reminds me of a go-kart track in that you can basically see the whole track from the grandstands.
“It’s quite nice and compact, but still with some fast corners and long straights, giving some opportunities to overtake. When I’ve raced there, it’s been entertaining. It’s a fun little track.
“We were strong in the Austrian Grand Prix – stronger than the rest of the midfield. We were actually pretty close to matching Red Bull, in qualifying at least. In the race, Red Bull had a lot more pace than us, but then both Mercedes failed to finish, so you need a bit of luck, as well.
“We had a perfect weekend from a team performance perspective.”
