Günther Steiner defends Magnussen

Kevin Magnussen stood out again at the Malaysian GP, ​​sometimes defending his place very (too?) dearly. The pilot Haas was particularly grappling with Fernando Alonso who had no other choice than to make contact to take the advantage against the Dane and take 11th place.

Fernando Alonso remembered that Kevin Magnussen had already had friction with Nico Hulkenberg (Renault) at the end of the Hungarian GP last July.

“Hülkenberg was right. More or less all pilots agree. It's 19 to one." commented Fernando Alonso after the Sepang event.

Günther Steiner, Haas Team Principal F1 Team, did not deny the combativeness of its driver but nevertheless defended the Dane's behavior on the track.

“Alonso is a very talented and charismatic driver. If someone confronts him, he knows how to react, declared the director of the American team to the newspaper Ekstra Bladet. Both attacked to the limit and that's what the audience wants to see. You have to go through tough times and get respect. If you constantly leave your place, people will walk all over you. You have to fight your battles without becoming a bully. Even though it has a bit of a bad reputation right now, that may change later. »

Kevin Magnussen is in 15th place in the Championship, 15 points behind his teammate Romain Grosjean.

Discover the analysis of the Malaysian GP carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2134 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from Wednesday on newsstands.