Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Haas F1 driver Kevin Magnussen offers some optimism for the small American team going forward.
After a lofty fifth place in the 2018 Constructors’ Championship, Haas’ 2019 efforts were less than spectacular, at the bottom of the pile with the likes of Williams. It was also already uncertain if team owner Gene Haas was going to continue the project into 2020.
Adding to the gloom around the team, many pundits say that the lack of racing is hurting smaller teams like Haas, but Magnussen believes that this could be a huge opportunity for the team.
“I can understand Gene was frustrated by what happened last year, but I think it was a bump in the road,” Magnussen told Danish newspaper BT.
“Gene knows he has a really good, small team. And there are so many exciting things happening in Formula One right now that could be an advantage for us.”
“After the corona crisis, the budget cap seems to be reducing and that can make us more competitive.
“We are now talking about a ceiling that is actually close to our budget.
“That will mean that we can continue roughly unchanged, while many of the competitors ahead of us will be forced to cut back. Then it gets interesting for Gene.”
If Magnussen’s optimism isn’t poorly placed, maybe this truly is the chance Gene Haas and co. need to re-establish themselves as a team that consistently fights for points, and to bring hope to American fans of the sport that their team can still compete with some of the best.
