Magnussen enjoyed Brazilian Sprint moment – happy with point

©Haas

Kevin Magnussen knew that his moment in the limelight in Saturday's Sprint at Interlagos would be short-lived, but the Haas poleman nevertheless accomplished what he set out to achieve.

Magnussen enjoyed a strong start from his shock pole position and held his own at the front of the field for the better part of two laps before predictably ceding the command to Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

As the Dutchman's pursuers also overhauled the Dane, Magnussen set his sights on delivering at least a point to his team and on ensuring a good starting position for himself on Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix grid.

And he ticked those two boxes at the end of the 24-lap mad dash.

"I really enjoyed today – and we got a point, and that’s also a very important point given our battle for eighth with AlphaTauri," he said.

"We knew we weren’t going to win this race and that wasn’t really the aim. It was all about enjoying staring from the pole position and then really trying to get a point out of it."

Read also: Magnussen pole 'well deserved', not just luck - Steiner

Mid-way through Saturday's Sprint, Magnussen had stabilized his position, running in seventh place just ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris.

But ultimately, the Dane was forced to concede the position to the Briton.

"The dream was to try and finish ahead of Lando just behind all the big cars. That didn’t quite happen, but we’re still happy with the point for eighth.

"We start from there tomorrow and that’s a position we’d be very happy about in regular qualifying.

"So, we start from inside the top 10 and hopefully we can go for points tomorrow too."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.