Kevin Magnussen to leave Haas at end of 2024 Formula 1 season with Esteban Ocon expected to take seat
Kevin Magnussen and Haas to part ways at the end of the 2024 F1 season; Esteban Ocon expected to take over Magnussen's seat when he leaves Alpine; watch every session from the Hungaroring live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday
Thursday 18 July 2024 15:54, UK
Kevin Magnussen will leave Haas at the end of the 2024 Formula 1 season, with Esteban Ocon expected to take his seat.
Magnussen's exit means Haas will have an all-new driver line-up for 2025, with team-mate Nico Hulkenberg leaving the American-owned team to join Sauber.
The signing of British teenager Oliver Bearman was confirmed ahead of the British Grand Prix earlier in July, while speculation over Ocon becoming his team-mate has been growing since the French driver's impending exit from Alpine was announced in June.
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Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said: "I'd like to thank Kevin for everything he's given us as a team - both on and off the track. He's truly been a bedrock of our driver line-up over the years.
"There's plenty of racing to go this year so I'm looking forward to seeing what else we can achieve with Kevin as we push together in the championship."
Magnussen's departure will end a seven-year association with Haas across two spells, with the 31-year-old first joining in 2017 before returning in 2022.
The Danish driver has also held seats at McLaren and Renault, but the bulk of his 175-race career - 135 races - has been with Haas - and he has 12 more before the completion of the 2024 season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December.
Magnussen's best year with Haas was in 2018 when he finished in ninth in the drivers' standings and helped Haas to a best finish of fifth in the Constructors' Championship that year.
Magnussen added: "I'd like to extend my thanks to everyone at MoneyGram Haas F1 Team - I'm proud to have raced for such a great team of people these last few years.
"In particular I'd like to thank Gene Haas for his commitment to me, notably in bringing me back once again in 2022 when I thought, at that time at least, my time in Formula 1 had ended. I've enjoyed some great moments with this team - memories I'll never forget.
"While I'm looking forward to the next chapter of my racing career, I remain fully focused on giving everything I've got for the rest of 2024 with MoneyGram Haas F1 Team."
Magnussen currently sits in 16th place in the Drivers' Championship, with five points. His best results have come in Australia, where he finished 10th, and in Austria, where he finished in eighth place.
His Haas team-mate Nico Hulkenberg has come sixth at each of the last two races and is one point outside the top 10, behind Aston Martin's Lance Stroll, while Haas are seventh in the Constructors Championship after 12 races.
Ocon to replace Magnussen at Haas?
Ocon is the front-runner to take over Magnussen's Haas seat for the 2025 season.
Confirmation of Ocon's departure from Alpine at the end of the 2024 season came after his collision with team-mate Pierre Gasly at the Monaco Grand Prix.
Sky Sports News understands the incident had no impact on Alpine's decision to part ways with Ocon.
The 27-year-old is yet to announce if he will join another F1 team in 2025 but Sky Sports News understands Haas is his most likely destination.
Could Magnussen take on different role at Haas for 2025?
Magnussen drops in to a competitive driver market where there are five seats still open for 2025 elsewhere on the grid, although the Dane hopes of continuing his career racing in F1 appear slim with others seemingly higher on teams' pecking orders.
But while he will no longer be Haas' race driver beyond December's season-ending Abu Dhabi GP, Komatsu did intriguingly offer the prospect of retaining ties with Magnussen in a different guise.
"With Kevin's special relationship with the team, I'm hoping we can find a way to keep working together in some capacity," said the Haas team boss.
"We can hopefully define that in the near future, but his extensive experience in Formula 1 and knowledge of our working operations are undoubtedly of value in our on-going growth and development."
Magnussen said he would be open to such an offer were he to be left without an F1 drive.
"We'll see what happens where I stand in regards to next year," Magnussen told Sky Sports F1.
"But I feel very much like this [Haas] is my family and I've been an integral part of their whole journey in Formula 1.
"So let's see. There might be opportunities here in a different role if nothing else happens.
"[Komatsu] is talking about it but right now of course I'm focused on the season and securing my future.
"It's open and I'm open to discussions about a potential role here if I don't continue in Formula 1 next year."
What next for Magnussen as Ocon waits in wings
Sky Sports News' Craig Slater:
"This is not entirely unexpected; Magnussen has quite significantly been outperformed by Nico Hulkenburg. But it's significant from a British perspective because teenager Oliver Bearman, the young Essex racer who is going to be at Haas next year, won't be now partnered by Magnussen.
"The understanding is Esteban Ocon, a race winner who is leaving the Alpine team at the end of the year, will be replacing Magnussen, but nothing official from Haas yet.
"Ocon has earned somewhat of a reputation as someone who has gained some friction with some of his team-mates over the years, possibly an undeserved reputation.
"Magnussen has had a good, solid career. Over 170 grand prixs, and he actually started with a second-place finish on his debut for McLaren, but it looks as though he will be heading away from F1, there doesn't seem an obvious location for him to continue his career on the grid."
Sky Sports F1's live Hungarian GP schedule
Thursday July 18
1.30pm: Drivers' Press Conference
Friday July 19
8.50am: F3 Practice
10am: F2 Practice
12pm: Hungarian GP Practice One (session starts at 12.30pm)
2pm: F3 Qualifying
3pm: F2 Qualifying
3.45pm: Hungarian GP Practice Two (session starts at 4pm)
5:15pm: The F1 Show
Saturday July 20
8:45am: F3 Sprint
11.15am: Hungarian GP Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.15pm: Hungarian GP Qualifying build-up
3pm: Hungarian GP Qualifying
5pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook
Sunday July 21
7:20am: F3 Feature Race
9am: F2 Feature Race
11am: Porsche Supercup
12:30pm: Grand Prix Sunday - Hungarian GP build-up
2pm: The HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Hungarian GP reaction
5pm: Ted's Notebook
Next up for F1 is the Hungarian Grand Prix from Budapest on July 19-21. You can watch every session live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership - No contract, cancel anytime
