Haas’ home race was mediocre for the team at best, with under pressure Mick Schumacher finishing outside the points, and Kevin Magnussen coming home in P8, two corners away from being P7.
The Dane had to mount a phenomenal recovery drive after being caught up in both major incidents in the race, firstly at Turn 1 with Carlos Sainz spinning in front of him, and then Lance Stroll colliding with Fernando Alonso after a safety car restart.
Magnussen thought he had done enough to take seventh place, however Sebastian Vettel had other ideas, taking advantage of his fresher tyres to make an stunning overtake, going around the outside of the Dane through Turns 16,17 and 18, making the move stick into the penultimate corner.
The move left many lost for words, with the German driver just reminding us of the quality the sport will be losing, with Vettel due to retire after Abu Dhabi this year.
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Magnussen himself was impressed by the move, struggling to resist praising the move that saw him lose a position on the final lap.
“Of course, I’m gutted to lose a position to Sebastian,” he said.
“I have to say it was some driving from him, that’s when you really realise why he’s a four-time world champion.
“As much as it p*ssed me off it was impressive to see.”
While some might blame the Haas’s strategy for the overtake, with Magnussen’s medium tyres being 38 laps old, team principal Guenther Steiner believes they made the right call.
“The whole team did a fantastic job, you cannot ask for more as the car was fast and Kevin was sure he could get to the end with his tyres.
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“I wouldn’t say we took a gamble, we took a chance, but we had a back up strategy to go onto the soft tyres and we brought home some points.”
Magnussen has been impressive this season, especially considering his time out of the sport, sitting 13th in the drivers championship, finishing as high as fifth in Bahrain.
While speculation continues as to who will take the second Haas seat next year, the team will be glad to have the Dane as a part of their line up for 2023.