Kevin Magnussen discusses Jeddah track modifications: “I hope it’s still going to be a thrilling place to drive”

Having achieved a strong result for Haas F1 Team with a ninth place finish at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix last season, Kevin Magnussen is looking to replicate his performance at Jeddah Corniche Circuit this year and score a share of points for the team. 

“Last year, Saudi Arabia was a strong weekend. Coming away from Bahrain with a fifth place and coming to Jeddah, expectations were high and the pace was good in the car. We got a bit unlucky with strategy – the safety car came out at a vulnerable time for us – but we still managed to score a few points and I hope we can be strong here again this year.” 

Several alterations have been made to the high-speed track since last year’s race, with the intention of improving sightlines and ensuring driver safety. Being the venue of one of 2022’s most action-packed weekends, Magnussen hopes that these changes don’t hamper the “thrilling” nature of competing there. 

“I think it’s a great circuit. Last year was my first time there and it’s a really fun and exciting track to drive, so I hope it hasn’t changed too much or at least not changed for the worse. 

“I hope it’s still going to be a thrilling place to drive. It’s a circuit where confidence with the car counts for a lot – you need to be confident and happy with the car and happy to push because it’s a pretty flat-out track.”

Magnussen also appreciates how small the margin for error is in Jeddah, as drivers can be caught out quickly for minor missteps– a quality that has been evident in the past two years since the circuit joined the calendar. 

“Some places you go to you find the groove very quickly and I felt that was the case in Jeddah last year. It’s one of those tracks that I really like and where there are a lot of consequences for going over the limit, and getting close to the limit is harder than going to other tracks with run-off.”

When asked if Saudi Arabia will give the team a clearer idea of where their car falls in the pecking order, Magnussen said that it is still going to be too soon to tell, with constant development underway and a variety of different kinds of tracks coming up on the schedule. 

“I think it will take a few races, it’s not like if we have two good races or two bad races that we can conclude much. We’ll get a rough idea of where we stack-up but I expect the midfield to be that close that it could easily change on other tracks later on in the year. There’s also a lot of development going on in all teams and good or bad, we just need to stay focused.”

“It’s all about the risk versus reward management” – Nico Hülkenberg

Team-mate Nico Hülkenberg likewise enjoyed racing in Saudi Arabia when subbing in for Sebastian Vettel at the start of 2022 and looks forward to returning to the circuit– this time as a full-time driver with Haas. 

“The track is unique and special. It’s unbelievably fast given it’s a street circuit and it definitely gives you a huge rush and kick. It’s very challenging and technical but I enjoyed it there last year and hopefully I’m going to enjoy it more this year.”

With small errors harbouring big consequences at a street circuit like Jeddah, Hülkenberg said that he takes a slightly different, more careful approach as opposed to a more traditional track such as last round’s Bahrain International Circuit. 

“It’s a street circuit so you always start off a little bit on the safer side and lap-by-lap, session-by-session move it up, pushing harder, getting closer to the limit and taking bigger risks.”

Ultimately, he said that it is a matter of compromise and balancing the risk of pushing to the limit with this tight and unforgiving layout. 

“In qualifying, a small mistake could have detrimental consequences, and you are aware of that as a driver. It’s all about the risk versus reward management that we do constantly.”

In agreement with Magnussen, Hülkenberg believes that it will take longer than just two races to truly understand the team’s position in this year’s championship as well as the attributes of VF-23. 

“Jeddah is obviously the second race and it’s got very different track characteristics from Bahrain, but then every other track afterwards is also a bit different so it’s going to take longer than two races to understand the car fully and see which characteristics it suits or not. 

“We’re in a ‘work in progress’ situation where things are still very dynamic and are at an early stage and can change a lot.”

Credit: Mark Sutton / LAT Images / Haas F1 Team