“It was way over the top”: Kevin Magnussen feels the FIA went too far by showing him a black-and-orange flag at the Singapore GP
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The Singapore Grand Prix saw some massive action in the midst of the wet conditions as all the teams are now hungry for scoring Championship points to improve their results as the season is almost at an end. With five Grands Prix left on the calendar, the Haas F1 Racing Team are determined to finish their run in Formula 1 2022 on the same high note with which they had begun their season. But unfortunately, both Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher narrowly missed out on points as they finish P12 and P13 respectively.
At the season opener in Bahrain, Kevin Magnussen had impressed all with a P5 position and some great points for Haas. But in Singapore, the Danish racer was handed a black-and-orange flag for driving with a loose wing endplate, which resulted from his brief contact with Max Verstappen on the opening lap at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
The flag required the Haas racer to abandon his lap and go to the pits for repairs. Kevin Magnussen has seen a total of three black-and-orange flags this year–in Canada, Hungary, and in Singapore. The 29-year-old believes the FIA went too far with the flag as there was no need for him to return to the pits with such minor damage to the car.
Kevin Magnussen accuses the FIA of not listening to him and his team
Kevin Magnussen narrowly missed out on points at a race where many of the frontrunners had to retire, and there was quite a good chance of him coming in the top 5, if not for the black-and-orange flag. The Haas driver believes there was no risk of his endplate breaking off as it is tethered to his car, but the FIA would not reconsider their decision of asking him to pit, no matter what Haas told them.
Speaking on the black-and-orange flag debacle, Kevin Magnussen said, “I couldn’t feel anything in the car. The team told me that the damage was minor. And it was on that endplate thing, which we’ve explained to the FIA it’s tethered in.”
He also said, “The FIA should know that. They make the regulations. That part doesn’t come off. So it’s not a safety concern and here it wasn’t even flapping. It was way over the top to give me the black and orange flag.”
While Kevin Magnussen had no other option but to abide by the direction that he was given by the FIA. But the racer, who is currently in his first year with Haas after being re-appointed by the team following the contract termination of Nikita Mazepin, made it clear that he thinks the FIA’s ruling was completely unnecessary and cost him a few good points at the Singapore Grand Prix.
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Riddhi Mondal
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