Haas drivers Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg are both bound by contracts that run at the end of the season and the team is set to retain the duo for 2024.
Haas plans to keep Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg for 2024 as the American team is currently having a fantastic year with the experienced drivers.
Particularly Hulkenberg, who was hired to replace Mick Schumacher, has excelled in his first season back in the pit lane.
Haas team boss Guenther Steiner decided against testing out rookie drivers in 2021 and 2022 in favor of a more seasoned lineup for 2023. The 2021 season witnessed the conclusion of Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin’s debut in Formula 1 driving for Haas in what was the team’s worst F1 season.
Magnussen made a return to the team he left at the end of 2020 after Mazepin was dropped as the war in Ukraine broke out.
Magnussen took control as the lead driver for the American team thanks to his Formula 1 experience, while Schumacher struggled to keep up and Haas had to let him go at the end of the previous season. As a result, Haas decided to employ two seasoned drivers for this season, which has turned out to be the perfect choice.
Hulkenberg has displayed fast pace despite not having participated in a full season of race action since 2019, notably in qualifying. He has consistently appeared in Q3 this year, and his nine points currently place him in 14th place overall in the Drivers’ Championship.
On the other hand, Magnussen has only scored two points, so he hasn’t exactly displayed the same level of speed as Hulkenberg. He took pole at the Brazilian Grand Prix sprint race at the end of last year in a major high for Haas.
However, this season, Haas’ race pace has frequently been a problem, which has been a tendency for all the Ferrari-powered teams.
Haas is in contention with Williams and Alfa Romeo for seventh place in the Constructors’ Championship, which would be their best finish since 2018.
Therefore, it makes perfect sense for the team to keep both Magnussen and Hulkenberg for the upcoming campaign, which is precisely what currently seems to be happening.
“Having had their hands burned trialling an inexperienced line-up that brought funding, Haas have flipped back to experience,” F1.com’s Lawrence Barretto reported. “It’s paying dividends with the American team in the fight to finish seventh in what would be their best finish since 2018.
“It’s almost certain they will name an unchanged line-up for 2024.”
Haas is reportedly discussing a new contract with Hulkenberg as well as ongoing quite favorable talks with Magnussen.
