30/06/2024
NEWS STORY
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team scored a double points finish with Nico Hulkenberg sixth, and Kevin Magnussen eighth, at the Austrian Grand Prix, Round 11 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, held Sunday at the Red Bull Ring.
Hulkenberg started from ninth on the grid on Pirelli P Zero Yellow medium tires and resisted the threat of Esteban Ocon, before gaining a spot when Charles Leclerc pitted with damage. Hulkenberg pitted on Lap 11 for White hard tires, before coming in again on Lap 38 for another set of the hardest compound. Hulkenberg moved up to sixth place late on following Lando Norris' retirement, having undercut Red Bull's Sergio Perez, and kept the Mexican at bay during the closing stages to collect the best finish of 2024 for MoneyGram Haas F1 Team.
Magnussen took the start from P12 position on medium tires and gained a couple of spots through the opening stages to run inside the top 10. Magnussen also executed a two-stop strategy, stopping on Lap 10 for hard tires and once more on Lap 38 for another set of hard tires, and emerged in ninth place, which became eighth in the wake of Norris' exit. Magnussen fended off RB's Daniel Ricciardo through the final laps to secure eighth place.
Sixth and eighth marks MoneyGram Haas F1 Team's strongest result of the year and lifts the team up to seventh place in the Constructors' Championship, on 19 points.
Nico Hulkenberg: "It was one hell of a race, especially at the end when it got so intense. It was touch and go to keep Perez behind in the last two laps, he came by but into Turn 3 I let him edge in front, so I got DRS, which obviously put me back in front. I'm very happy, that's double points for the team which helps in a big way. I didn't expect that, an amazing team performance, and I think it's confirmed now that in the midfield on all different types of tracks we're competitive, we can fight, and that's really great news."
Kevin Magnussen: "It's been a smooth weekend - two qualifying sessions with no traffic, two good pit stop in the race, and the strategy has been spot on - I couldn't have asked for more. We can't count on this result as Silverstone is a hard track, but this puts us back to P7 in the Constructors' Championship and that makes me very happy for the entire team."
Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: "I'm just so happy for everyone in the team. Sometimes we get unlucky but today our execution was amazing, Nico and Kevin drove well, and pit stops were good, everything was great. I'm speechless, I'm just so happy for everyone to get this result and for Nico to beat Perez on merit, that's a huge statement."
Check out our Sunday gallery from the Red Bull Ring here.