Haas F1 Team confirmed that both Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen will stay on with the team for the 2019 Formula 1 season.
This will be the outfit’s fourth year in F1 and also Grosjean’s fourth with the team while Magnussen stays on for his third year with the American squad. “From the very beginning, we needed experienced drivers to hasten the development of our car and our team.
“And we have two very good and experienced drivers in Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen. We’ve improved drastically from last year to this year, so retaining both drivers was a pretty easy decision,” said Guenther Steiner.
“I think the 100-point barrier should be and will be broken, and we’ll do it with Romain and Kevin. Both drivers push each other to be better, and their collective feedback allows us to be better.
“It’s not a coincidence that in their second year as teammates, Haas F1 Team is having its best year. By keeping Romain and Kevin together, we aim to do even better next year,” the Italian added.
Grosjean said: “It’s impressive to see what this team has accomplished in such a relatively short time, and for someone who has been here since the very beginning, I take a lot of pride in the time, effort and sacrifice we’ve all put forth to make Haas F1 Team so competitive.
“I’m very happy to continue with Haas F1 Team and represent Haas Automation and all of our partners. Gene Haas has built something very special – something we can make even better – and it’s an honor to be a part of it.”
Magnussen added: “I’ve never been in a better situation than the one I’m in here at Haas F1 Team. This is a team filled with racers and we’re all striving for the same thing. There’s no bureaucracy and everything is very straightforward.
“Gene Haas is all about efficiency, and he and Guenther Steiner have created a very efficient environment that gets the best from its people. We all believe in each other and that’s why we’ve achieved as much as we have.”
The Frenchman has been with the team since the outset which brings loyalty factor into play in his retention which was speculated hugely after his difficult start to the year. At the same time, the Dane’s performances was enough to keep him without any tensions.
Steiner had earlier said they wouldn’t field a younger driver in the team considering they are still at the learning curve and will need two experienced racers to help them take that bigger step going forward.
Even though certain names were linked to the drive, the retention was only a formality for the American team. Haas has done much better over the years as it fights for fourth in only its fourth year, something which the other new teams couldn’t achieve.