Magnussen blames wind for early crash in qualifying

Like the rest of the drivers, Kevin Magnussen had all of Saturday to think about Sunday's rescheduled qualifying session in Suzuka. Sadly for the Dane, like Robert Kubica, his session lasted only a matter of minutes.

No sooner had the session gone green following Kubica's early shunt at the final corner, the red flags were out again as Magnussen's Haas rotated rear-first into the barriers at the same corner. And Magnussen had no doubt as to what had caused the incident.

"It’s very gusty today, windy, so I think I got a gust, lost the rear," he said succinctly before adding: "Pretty ******."

Having not set a time, Magnussen was set for a back of the grid start anyway. But a five-place grid drop for replacing his VF-19's gearbox made sure of it – although with Kubica starting the race from the pit lane after a change of chassis following his shunt, Magnussen would at least be ahead of the Pole by the time he got to the first corner...