Son of Jan, as highly rated as his dad was, perhaps even more so, who has won the British Formula 3 and Formula Renault 3.5 titles on his way to a McLaren drive in 2014. Started spectacularly with a 2nd place on his debut in Melbourne, and although he did reasonably, the arrival of Fernando Alonso pushed Magnussen to the sidelines in 2015 and he then acted as McLaren's test and reserve driver. A pre-season testing crash for Alonso meant Magnussen stepped in for the first Grand Prix of the season but he didn't start the race as the team's dire season started the way it carried on. In 2016, he returned to the sport with the rebranded Renault team, before switching to Haas in 2017. In 2021, he moved out of Formula 1 and into the IMSA sportscar series in the United States. He remained there (briefly) in 2022 but also appeared in Indycar in 2021. After Nikita Mazepin was sacked by Haas, Magnussen made a surprise but welcome return to Formula 1 in 2022 and remained there until the end of the 2024 season.

Biography last updated 27 Aug 2024