Kevin Magnussen's Chinese GP practice drama was suspension failure
Renault Formula 1 driver Kevin Magnussen said he had no warning about the rear suspension failure that caused his Chinese Grand Prix practice puncture
Magnussen appeared to suffer a destructive left-rear puncture before setting a time in Friday's first session, shortly after Felipe Massa's own two issues with tyres on the same corner of his Williams.
It prompted a lengthy red-flag period to clear debris and complete a thorough track inspection.
However, just as Massa's punctures were caused by a set-up issue, Magnussen said his was the result of a rear suspension failure.
"[It was] a suspension failure," he said of the cause of the puncture.
"And then the tyre punctured after. [The car] sits down and then the tyre touches the floor and then it rips.
"I was doing 300[km/h], 310, and I felt the car go. And then boom, starting to dance around. So no real warning.
"It was fairly easy to control, a straight line, not in a corner, so I just lifted off and stopped the car."
Renault kept Magnussen in his garage during the second session as it investigated the cause of the issue, which the Dane reported had been identified and was being fixed.
He admits he will be "catching up" for the rest of the weekend, especially if forecast rain does hit Shanghai on Saturday.
"I guess if it's wet, it is a blow," Magnussen said.
"Because then we need to set the car up for the race, which looks like it's going to be dry, and then I'm going to have no idea what I'm going into the race with, which is going to be a little bit tough.
"That's what we have, going to try our best."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
McLaren's Alonso sure some F1 teams will get new rules wrong
Formula 1 peaked in 2000s, not Senna/Prost era, Alonso believes
How Hamilton has battled his own mentality
Komatsu: Magnussen a team player despite reason to be “pissed off”
Haas: Jeddah F1 “Unsportsmanlike” accusations were “complete bullshit”
The driving style secrets of F1's current stars
How real-time scrutineering ensures fair and consistent competition in motorsport
How MotoGP brakes work: Secrets of stopping a 220mph bike
Hyundai enacts contingency plan after WRC Kenya fuel issue
Vanwall working on 2025 WEC comeback with heavily-revised Hypercar
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments