Kevin Magnussen keen to follow in father's footsteps with IndyCar drive

Kevin Magnussen

Magnussen keen to follow in father's footsteps with IndyCar drive

Jan Magnussen competed in CART in the late 1990s

Ian Parkes

Thursday 29 October 2020 16:44

Kevin Magnussen has revealed he would love to switch to IndyCar next season with his five-year spell in Formula 1 now drawing to a close.

Magnussen, along with Haas team-mate Romain Grosjean, recently confirmed he is to leave the F1 team at the end of the season, primarily as the Dane brings in little via way of sponsorship.

Father Jan is proof there is life beyond F1 as following his own 23-race spell in the late 1990s, he enjoyed a successful career in sports cars, becoming a four-time winner of Le Mans in the GTS/GT1 category as well as enjoying a GTLM class win at Daytona. He also competed in 11 CART races across 1996 and 1999.

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Magnussen has previously looked into IndyCar in the past, and while it would represent an ideal move, he recognises the drawbacks given the current climate.

"Indycar has been something I have been interested in always," he said. "My dad was an Indycar driver back in the 90s and I bumped into Indycar racers with him as a small child.

"[I have] Just always thought it was super cool and I would love to have a go in that sometime.

"But even outside Formula 1, the whole world is hit by the times we have had this year and it doesn't look easy to get good deals over there. We will see. I am not saying no to it at all, I am not saying it is impossible, but it looks like it would be difficult."

Primarily, Magnussen wants to continue his F1 odyssey that started with McLaren in 2014 and continued with Renault in 2016 before his current four-season spell with Haas.

At present, it appears Magnussen may have to take another sabbatical - as he did in 2015, although he served as McLaren's test and reserve driver that year - before a potential comeback in 2022 should a seat be available.

"Obviously, I am very open at the moment to anything really," said Magnussen. "I think for sure, I feel that I have more to bring in Formula 1.

"I am only 28 years old and I still feel like I have more to give in F1. But we will see."

Hinting at joining a series that could at least offer him an opportunity to stand on top of the podium again, he added: "I really miss winning.

"I miss the feeling of winning races and that is something I have really started to think about a lot recently, how much I miss that. We will see where that opportunity is and what comes my way and then I will take the decision at some time."

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