The former boss of Aston Martin's Formula 1 team, Otmar Szafnauer, now admits that he threatened Kevin Magnussen's replacement at Haas.
The noise is loud in Formula 1. Especially in the garages. Now the former and Aston Martin team boss, Otmar Szafnauer, admits that he threatened Kevin Magnussen's replacement at Haas already in 2017.
At the time, Esteban Ocon drove for Force India, the current Aston Martin, where Otmar Szafnauer was employed as team manager.
There was a crunch in the relationship between Ocon and current Red Bull driver Sergio Perez. So much so, in fact, that the two clashed on the Spa track in Belgium in 2017.
This is written by Formelaustria.at .
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And that did not go down well with the team manager. In fact, Otmar Szafnauer had more than enough of the fights the team's two cocks fought against each other on the pitch.
– I asked them both to come into my office, where I told them that their behavior was completely unacceptable.
– I threatened them that if their behavior changed immediately, I would break the Parc Ferme rules for cars just to make them start the next lob five places apart, says Szafnauer.
The conversation between the three, which was probably mostly a monologue on the part of the team manager, also had quite practical consequences. Ocon and Perez were banned from racing against each other for the rest of the 2017 season.
Sergio Perez was later fired from Force India/Racing Point in 2020. However, the team had already parted ways with Esteban Ocon at the end of 2018. Someone the French racing choir later admitted caused him to break down in tears in a parking lot.
Today, it seems that Ocon will continue in the sport, while Danish Kevin Magnussen is currently without a seat after the 2024 season. However, the 31-year-old Dane has emphasized that he is looking for a new seat in Formula 1.
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