Kevin Magnussen has insisted that there was nothing behind his radio message about Sir Lewis Hamilton at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Magnussen had started the race in eighth, two positions behind Hamilton after both Haas cars made it into Q3 for the first time since 2019, and the Dane tried to go around the outside of the seven-time champion at Turn Four.
When he did though, the pair made contact with one another, forcing them both out onto the gravel, causing them punctures.
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Magnussen suffered further damage to his car, and would finish the race in P17 between the Williams cars of Nicholas Latifi and Alex Albon.
Conversely, Hamilton made an exceptional recovery to fifth and, following the incident, the 29-year-old got onto the radio to say that the Mercedes had “rammed” him, and that he “knew what he was doing.”
After the race though, the Haas driver confirmed that he meant “nothing” by the message, and does not want to dwell on the incident.
“It was just in the heat of the moment. You say whatever you say, and then you go and look at it. And it’s often a different story,” said Magnussen, quoted by Motorsport.com.
“You’re always pissed off in the heat of the moment, but I’ll go and watch it again, see what happens and then move on.”
Haas were the only team to bring no upgrades to the weekend in Barcelona, and Mick Schumacher affirmed on Friday that there was a lot more pace to be “exploited,” a statement that was vindicated by their appearance in the top 10 in qualifying.
The terrific pace is something that Magnussen would love to carry over to the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend.
“The pace of the car has been good this weekend,” he added.
“Despite everyone, most people, bringing upgrades, we were able to stick with them. So there’s a lot of positives that we will carry on to Monaco.”
Speaking on the incident, Hamilton did not wish to elaborate too much on it.
READ: ‘Gutted’ Hamilton sends warning to Ferrari and Red Bull
“He came from behind, and then hit the side of my car. I can’t say anything about it, it is what it is,” said the seven-time champion.
Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell ended the race on the podium behind the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, while Schumacher finished down in 14th, continuing what is now a 28-race weekend scoreless run for the German.