Kevin Jan Magnussen, born October 5th 1992, is a Danish driver currently competing for Haas F1. He got his first taste of a Formula One car as a member of McLaren’s Junior Driver Program when when he drove the McLaren MP4-27 at a young drivers test in Abu Dhabi in 2012 and set the fastest time. It was enough to impress the sporting director at McLaren, and the distance covered was enough to secure an FIA Super License, which meant he had the credentials to move up to F1. The following year, 2013, Magnussen sealed the deal by winning the Formula Renault 3.5 Series. Convinced that Magnussen was ready to make the step up, McLaren signed him to a two-year deal in Formula One for the 2014 and 2015 seasons. In his debut race, Magnussen qualified in fourth and finished third on the podium, becoming the second Danish driver (his father, Jan, was the first) to score points in a Formula One race, the first Danish driver to finish on the podium and the first rookie driver to finish on the podium in his debut race since Lewis Hamilton in 2007. After the race, the Red Bull that had finished in second was disqualified for a fuel flow infraction and Magnussen was promoted to second. It was a fantastic start to the season, but unfortunately that was the highest points tally McLaren would score all year. Magnussen had trouble keeping pace with his teammate, 2009 World Champion Jenson Button, for the remainder of the season, and in 2016 he was relegated to test and reserve driver to make room for the incoming Fernando Alonso, another former World Champion. It was hardly fair to judge a rookie’s performance against two seasoned veterans, but that is the nature of Formula One. In 2016, after being released by McLaren, Magnussen was committed to finding a race seat anywhere he could, whether it was in IndyCar, DTM, or driving a Le Mans Prototype in the World Endurance Championship. He was in talks with teams from all of the above including F1 teams Haas, Renault and Manor. He did not want to end up on the sidelines again, and he didn’t. Renault picked him up for 2016, and the following year, Magnussen signed with Haas, where he is currently partnered with teammate Nico Hulkenberg.
Kevin was born in Roskilde, Denmark to father Jan Magnussen, a former F1 driver and four-time Le Mans winner, and Britt Peterson, both of whom supported his racing career. In fact, Kevin received a go-kart for his first birthday and grew up watching his dad race, knowing that he wanted to follow in his footsteps. By the time Kevin was 16 he was competing in single seaters, winning the Danish Formula Ford Championship in 2008. But it was expensive, and he had to resort to working as a welder for a brief period before receiving sponsorship to help cover the costs of moving up to Formula Renault in 2009. It wasn’t always easy, but driving is in Kevin’s DNA. Since his dad was only 19 when Kevin was born he’s still relatively young and the two have driven as teammates on occasion, most recently in the 2022 Gulf 12 Hours endurance race in Abu Dhabi after the F1 season ended. They also competed together in an LMP2 car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2021. That year, Kevin’s contract at Haas was not renewed, so he drove in the Weather Tech SportsCar Championship series and was slated to drive for Peugeot in the World Endurance Championship in 2022 before Haas brought him back into the fold with a multi-year contract.
When Kevin Magnussen talks about 2021, he talks about growing up and moving on. Aside from his racing he covered some F1 races for Danish television, moved back to Denmark and had a daughter with his wife, Louise. He says being a father has completely changed his priorities and given him a sense of perspective. He feels much calmer at the track and in the car. He says he used to feel like he was under constant pressure to drive faster and keep his job. Some drivers thrive under those conditions. Others don’t. In 2017, Magnussen forced Nico Hulkenberg off the track at the Hungarian GP while passing. After the race, while Magnussen was being interviewed on live television, Hulkenberg interrupted to congratulate him for being “the most unsporting driver on the grid.” Magnussen’s reply, “Suck my balls.” The phrase has become a common greeting used by Magnussen’s new teammates, and he and Hulkenberg both say it’s water under the bridge now. They have both been out of F1 for a brief time and both are extremely grateful to be back. Both have wives now and both are fathers, so we might expect some good behavior and clean racing. Magnussen has a great relationship with Haas and his new maturity, combined with his and Hulkenberg’s driving experience, could propel the team to new levels of performance.