22/09/2024
NEWS STORY
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team finished with Nico Hulkenberg ninth and Kevin Magnussen 19th, at the Singapore Grand Prix, Round 18 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, held Sunday at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
Hulkenberg took the start from sixth place on Pirelli P Zero Yellow medium tires and maintained position after battling against McLaren's Oscar Piastri through the opening sector. The German came in on lap 29 for White hard tires and ceded positions to the recovering Scuderia Ferrari drivers, as well as Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso. Hulkenberg took the checkered flag in ninth position to add two valuable points to MoneyGram Haas F1 Team's 2024 tally, marking the third successive race in the points for the team.
Magnussen started from 14th on the grid on hard tires and maintained position through the opening stint, pitting on lap 28 to take on a set of medium rubber. Magnussen sustained a left-rear puncture after lightly brushing the wall at turn 5 on lap 50, and had to complete almost a full lap before pitting. The Dane re-emerged on Red soft tires but, two laps down, pulled into the pits on lap 58 to retire the car, officially classifying in 19th place.
Nico Hulkenberg: "I'm happy to get points. There are a few things to look into and review from our side, but otherwise a clean race. It wasn't very eventful but it was very stressful keeping the Red Bull behind for the whole of the second stint, it was tough to bring it home. We managed to do so, and I'm happy, this is a bit of redemption for last week. We've been there or thereabouts many times this season, and it's not the first time we've pulled it off. We put ourselves in a good position yesterday with quali which was another key point. I had a clean start, a clean race, and it's important that we got those points."
Kevin Magnussen: "I got a puncture - sometimes you hit a rough spot and it cuts the tire. We weren't quick on the hard tire, we tried to do the opposite strategy and go long and hope for a safety car in the middle window, which didn't happen. We had to cut it short on the hard compound, and then I got the puncture at the end. We've had good pace at recent races and we're in a good spot with the car. We have an upgrade coming in Austin and we have every race to look forward to for the rest of the season."
Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: "It was great to come away with two points and now scoring points in three consecutive races is very good. The consistency is there, and Nico drove very well today; his second stint had pressure the entire time from a Red Bull and he didn't make any mistakes and brought the car home in P9. That's two more points and only three away from RB with six races to go. We also opened up another two-point gap to Williams as well, so mission accomplished."
Check out our Sunday gallery from Marina Bay here.