After this memorable sprint qualifying, a wild party starts in the Haas garage. Kevin Magnussen takes pole position completely unexpectedly. Everything is going in favor of the Dane. Teammate Mick Schumacher, on the other hand, has to look on in frustration again.
The Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in Interlagos, São Paulo is a place for special Formula 1 moments. 2010 was one of those when Nico Hülkenberg surprisingly raced to pole position on a slippery track in the inferior Williams. 2022 is one of those again: This time it is Haas underdog Kevin Magnussen, who leaves the highly decorated competition for dominator Max Verstappen and record champion Lewis Hamilton in the final round of qualifying for the sprint race at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
That Magnussen and that Hulkenberg will likely form the driver duo at Haas next season is a nice side note on this day when the racing world is upside down. When something completely unexpected finally happens. When no Red Bull, no Mercedes, no Ferrari driver cheers. But one of the “little ones”.
“What can I say? The team put me out on the track at exactly the right moment,” Magnussen recapitulated: “I was first out, drove a reasonable lap and now I’m on pole – unbelievable!”
It’s bitter that the last place in qualifying goes to a Haas driver – to Mick Schumacher. The 23-year-old, whose time as a regular driver in the premier class is probably coming to an end, would have needed a Magnussen moment. But instead of taking advantage of the changing conditions, Schumacher fell to the end of the field in lap one of qualifying. Joy and sorrow – sometimes just a garage apart in Formula 1.
“He was maybe too hesitant on his first lap, we had just switched to dry tires,” team manager Günther Steiner analyzed Schumacher’s performance and gave a South Tyrolean watsch: “If you see what went on today, you should tell him: You can create more.”
For Magnussen, on the other hand, November 11th should be a source of satisfaction. At the end of 2020, the Haas team sorted him out, the Dane had to make room because the Russian Nikita Mazepin joined Haas thanks to Papa Dmitri’s sponsor millions and because the Ferrari-sponsored Formula 2 champion pushed Schumacher into F1. Magnussen left in good spirits, with no bad blood. However, his Formula 1 career, which had started in 2014 with a podium for McLaren in Melbourne, seemed irrevocably over, the dream of the premier class was over. Until Haas chased the Mazepins off the farm earlier this year in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine. When the US racing team suddenly needed a driver, Steiner knew who to call – and Magnussen was there again.
The veteran played his experience, especially at the beginning of the season. When the new ground effect cars hopped over the courses of this earth, Magnussen found the necessary balance in the Haas VF-22, “Danish Dynamite” ignited. In the first four races, “KMag” finished in the points three times and regularly outperformed his young stable rival Schumacher. The German only got stronger towards the middle of the season and since then has been on a par with Magnussen, especially in racing trim.
When it came down to it in São Paulo, when the motorsport gods patronized a (possibly) once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Of course, Magnussen bit ice cold – and not Schumacher. Certainly, everything went well for Magnussen in the decisive phase of qualifying. Verstappen’s braking in turn eight, George Russell’s departure in turn four, the red flag, the onset of rain. The Dane’s time was suddenly set in stone.
Mere luck is not the first pole position for Magnussen and Haas. Steiner also emphasized this. “The team has been working hard for seven years. It wasn’t just luck, it was good work from the team: the right tire, the right time and Kevin delivered the lap,” said the 57-year-old.
Magnussen will most likely not win the sprint race (8.30 p.m. in the ntv.de live ticker) despite pole position. He’s still the winner of this weekend – even if Verstappen routinely celebrates victory number 15 on Sunday (from 5.45 p.m. on RTL and in the ntv.de live ticker) while Haas’ team is already packing up.
