On Friday, Haas F1 boss Ayo Komatsu explained why he made the difficult decision to fire Kevin Magnussen…
Ayo Komatsu: “The decision was difficult. Kevin did a lot for the team, especially in the first period with Romain Grosjean.
Fourth and fifth in Austria in 2018 was great. Then Gene Haas and Gunter Steiner asked him to come back – and he finished fifth in Bahrain. Magnussen really did a lot for us. I spent many seasons with him, it wasn’t easy to leave, but that’s the responsibility of my position as team leader.
We know that next year we will have a young Oliver Berman, so the second driver has to be experienced and give the team stable recommendations. If we compare Hulkenberg and Magnussen, then in terms of stability I need someone who is closer to Nico’s stability.
But the difference between Kevin and Niko is very small. They have different results, different amount of points, but the difference is small, so it was very difficult to make a decision.
Whether I like it or not, it’s part of my job. I had to make a professional decision that was in the best interest of the team. Gene wanted me to do just that.
Ultimately, I asked myself, “Is this a professional decision? Am I doing the right thing for the team?” No feelings, nothing personal. I had to put the potential, the results, the growth of the team first, and I feel confident that I made a professional decision. Whether it’s right or wrong is up to you, but during the decision-making process, I felt confident that I was acting professionally.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
