F1 News: Lewis Hamilton Returns to Magnussen - 'I Had a Good Time, He Didn't'

Alex Harrington | May 5, 2024

May 2, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton (44) during a press / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Kevin Magnussen experienced a challenging Sprint Race filled with penalties, contrasting sharply with Lewis Hamilton’s more positive outlook. Ahead of the Grand Prix today, Hamilton once again reflected on the fun he had competing, while Magnussen shared a less enthusiastic view.

Kevin Magnussen’s Sprint Race was marred by a series of infractions that led to a hefty 25 seconds of time penalties. Despite a promising start where he capitalized on the DRS to gain positions and secure P8, a strategic error from his teammate Nico Hülkenberg left Magnussen vulnerable. Hülkenberg’s move to cut a chicane inadvertently caused Magnussen to lose the DRS advantage, sparking a tense on-track battle with Hamilton.

With little chance of pushing further up the pack, the Danish driver used his time to give Hulkenberg the defence he needed by keeping his car as wide as passible in an epic duel with the 7-time world champion. Hamilton was happy to have a fight on his hands, and a day later he continued to smile over the on-track moments.

"I had so much fun. I just spoke to Kevin just now and I was like, I had a good time. He said he didn't," Hamilton admitted. "Honestly, I love racing in that situation when you're battling with someone non-stop through a race. I think that's what we live for, right? There are some races where you don't get to have that opportunity."

Reflecting on the penalties and the fierce competition, Magnussen wasn't as happy about his choices:

"All the penalties were well deserved - no doubt about it. But I had to play the game again."

"I was in a very good position behind Nico [Hulkenberg] there. In the beginning of the race I gained a lot of positions and was up in P8."

"Then Nico cut the chicane and I lost the DRS. Nico could have given that back to give me the DRS to protect because then we would have easily been P7 and P8."

"Instead, I was really vulnerable to Lewis. Started fighting with him like crazy and I had to just create the gap like I did in Jeddah."

"I started using these stupid tactics which I don't like doing, but the end of the day I did my job as a team player and Nico scored his points because I got that gap for him so Lewis and Tsunoda couldn't catch him."

"Not the way I like to go racing at all but it was what I had to do today."