Kevin Magnussen hits out at Formula 1 weekend change that “hasn’t worked”

05/02/2022

Haas driver Kevin Magnusson has claimed the F1 change designed to reduce the workload of drivers has failed.

Magnusson, 29, has been one of the success stories of the new campaign, having not initially had a drive for any team. However, in March, it was announced by Haas that Russian driver Nikita Mazepin was being axed amid his country's invasion of Ukraine, and his alleged family links to Vladimir Putin.

As a result, team boss Gunther Steiner opted to recall the Dane, who had previously driven for Haas for four seasons from 2017-2020. Prior to that, he had F1 stints at both Renault and McLaren.

The American team failed to score a point in 2021 but in this year's opening race in Bahrain, Magnussen secured a super fifth place. He was also ninth in both Saudi Arabia and Emilia Romagna, only failing to score any points at the Australian Grand Prix.

He's now had his say on issues away from the track though, following F1 bosses cutting the weekend timetable from four days to three. Driver media sessions, which originally took place on a Thursday, have now been moved to the Friday morning – ahead of first practice.

"If the reason for the change was to make the weekend shorter, that certainly hasn’t worked. But for me, that's okay," Magnussen was quoted as saying by GP Fans. Teams can still hold media briefings on a Thursday if they wish, but they are no longer mandatory.

"My problem with it is that you go through a lot of interviews in a weekend and it's hard because you're answering the exact same question. So although it's about a subject you're very excited about, that wears off, through Thursday and then into Friday."

"It becomes a bit hard to be authentic at the end when you've answered the same question 30 times." He's not alone in his views, with the likes of Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel also arguing the schedule needs looking at.

The compressed schedule is one of a series of new regulations in F1 this season, in a brand new era for the sport. And whilst Magnussen may not be a fan of the media side of things, other regulations have seemingly benefitted both him and Haas.

The overhaul was designed to make the sport more competitive, and thus far, that notion seems apparent. Indeed, Magnusson has finished above seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in two Grand Prix's so far.

Teammate Mick Schumacher though, still awaits his first point ahead of the inaugural Miami Grand Prix this weekend. Following that, teams will descend on Barcelona a fortnight after.

In another alteration, this campaign included a record total of 23 F1 races, one more than in 2021. However, a replacement is still being sought for the Russian Grand Prix, which was cancelled as soon as the conflict in Ukraine began.

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