Breaking news
Formula 1 Singapore GP
Plastic sandwich bag caused Magnussen's pace drop-off
A plastic sandwich bag lodged in Kevin Magnussen's front wing was the cause of the pace drop-off that effectively dashed his chances of a point-scoring finish in the Singapore Grand Prix.
Jonathan Noble
Edited: Sep 23, 2019, 1:49 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Magnussen had looked on course for an eighth-place finish at the Marina Bay circuit but it all went wrong after the final safety car period when a clear plastic bag got stuck in the left side of front wing – badly affecting the car's aerodynamics.
The bag, which can be seen in the exclusive photograph below, cost the Haas driver around four seconds per lap of pace.
The team had no choice but to pit him three laps from home to get rid of it because he was losing too much time and was also destroying the tyres.
Team principal Gunther Steiner said: "It was after the [final] restart, when he all of a sudden got slower.
"He drove by a few times and we checked [the wing] because one of the engineers said we can see a loss of front downforce, and we thought the wing was broken.
"But Kevin said he didn't hit anything, and you could not see it when he was driving by as the wing was up.
"That is why we made a pitstop, as he lost so much downforce, so he came in and we put new tyres on and took the bag out.
"The tyres were going, so there was no point to stay out there. At least with a new set of tyres we can put a nice lap in and we see what it is. We got the bag."
Asked by Motorsport.com if he felt the bag had cost the team points, Steiner said: "It didn't help. You start to think that the front wing is broke and you lose downforce, and then the car doesn't work any more. Would we have been able without the bag to keep the tyres alive? I don't know."
Magnussen eventually finished 17th thanks to the late pitstop, with teammate Romain Grosjean coming home 11th.
Read Also:
Bag of Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team
Photo by: Haas F1 Team
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Mercedes annoyed it got Singapore GP "so wrong"
Next article Ferrari considered Vettel/Leclerc swap in Singapore
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
More from
Kevin Magnussen
Title battles and bittersweet farewells headline packed 54-car Petit Le Mans grid
IMSA
IMSA
Petit Le Mans
Title battles and bittersweet farewells headline packed 54-car Petit Le Mans grid
Kevin Magnussen vs. Noah Gragson NASCAR feud: A lap-by-lap breakdown
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
San Diego
Kevin Magnussen vs. Noah Gragson NASCAR feud: A lap-by-lap breakdown
Kevin Magnussen's NASCAR debut is part of post-F1 'open mind' to global motorsports
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
San Diego
Kevin Magnussen's NASCAR debut is part of post-F1 'open mind' to global motorsports
More from
Haas F1 Team
Charles Leclerc penalised for Liam Lawson clash; Kimi Antonelli and Oliver Bearman also punished after F1 Brazilian GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
8 h
Charles Leclerc penalised for Liam Lawson clash; Kimi Antonelli and Oliver Bearman also punished after F1 Brazilian GP
Haas justifies picking Rafael Camara over Ryo Hirakawa for F1 Brazilian GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
Haas justifies picking Rafael Camara over Ryo Hirakawa for F1 Brazilian GP
Latest news
WEC drivers question lack of full-course yellow after heavy Monza crash
WEC
WEC WEC
Monza
1 min
WEC drivers question lack of full-course yellow after heavy Monza crash
Kyle Larson, Cliff Daniels and the Hendrick 5 are who we say they are
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
2 h
Kyle Larson, Cliff Daniels and the Hendrick 5 are who we say they are
Final NASCAR Cup points standings after 2026 Homestead finale
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
6 h
Final NASCAR Cup points standings after 2026 Homestead finale
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.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.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe