"I came away with a nice 360 there" - Haas F1's Mick Schumacher on his collision with Esteban Ocon in Bahrain GP
Haas F1's Mick Schumacher did not make much of the shunt from Esteban Ocon, which scuppered his hopes of a good race during the 2022 Bahrain GP last weekend.
Speaking at a pre-race press conference ahead of the upcoming 2022 F1 Saudi Arabian GP, the German was asked if the collision with Ocon's Alpine had a lasting impact on his car during the race. The Haas F1 driver said:
“I mean I think it [the car] wasn’t as before, that’s for sure, but the damage wasn’t huge. Obviously, we were struggling a bit more than we hoped for after that. Nonetheless, it’s racing. These things happen. You come close to each other. I came away with a nice 360 there so it was alright.”
Mick Schumacher, son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher, started the race in P12 after an impressive showing in Saturday's qualifying sessions. After having narrowly missed out on points with a P11 finish in Sakhir, the Haas F1 driver was also asked to share the positives from his race weekend. The 23-year-old said:
“I think there was obviously a positive. The car is a lot better than last year. It’s a lot more competitive, obviously. We had a car in the top five, which was amazing for the team. I am proud of that and it just shows the potential of the car. So, we have everything to play in and I think we have a good season ahead of us.”
Haas F1's Kevin Magnussen was able to follow Mercedes for almost entire Bahrain GP
Haas F1's Kevin Magnussen claimed he was able to follow the Mercedes cars in front of him for almost the entirety of the 2022 Bahrain GP.
Fresh off a fantastic P5 finish at his first Grand Prix in over a year, the Dane was ecstatic with the result when speaking to the media after the race. He said:
“It was very funny. It’s really nice to be back in this position and I just have to thank the team for the incredible work done. We were the fastest mid-table car on the track. I was able to follow Mercedes for almost the entire race. Of course, it is true that the safety car helped us at the end, but today we have seen a different story than in the past. As I’ve said all weekend, I still can’t believe the opportunity I had. It’s crazy to think we finished in fifth position.”
Haas has emerged as a surprising dark horse after languishing at the back of the F1 grid for years now. 2022 could be the year that sees them break into the midfield for good.