Kevin Magnussen is happy his time in Formula 1 allowed him to drive what might be the fastest ever cars after his last race in Abu Dhabi.
The Dane had a subdued run to 18th for Haas, with only stand-in teammate Pietro Fittipaldi and the retired Sergio Perez behind him.
And commenting post-race he looked back on his career which began in 2014 at McLaren.
“Bit strange, I think it wasn’t a good race for us at all, we were dead slow,” he told Sky Sports.
“But I feel just grateful really for having got the opportunity to live my childhood dream, have a career in Formula 1. It’s not an easy place to get to.
“I got six seasons and raced for some amazing teams, I have a trophy at home with the Formula 1 logo on it, not too bad.”
Of course, that trophy was for second place at his first race in Australia six years ago, and Magnussen admits his desire for more silverware is why he isn’t expecting a future F1 return.
“I don’t think so because I miss winning a lot, I miss being in a winning position,” he said, with his next move to Chip Ganassi Racing in IMSA for 2021 already confirmed.
“I miss being in a place where I can focus on a Championship and really go for wins.
“It’s not realistic to leave Formula 1 now and go and do IMSA, and then come back into a winning position in Formula 1.
“If I was to stay in Formula 1 I would want to move forward and go for wins, and that’s not going to happen.
“So I’m really looking forward to what I’m going to do now, super excited which makes it a lot easier to step out of this because I know I’m going to be in a winning position next year.”
Asked what he’ll miss the most from F1, however, Magnussen said: “Difficult to say, for sure driving these amazing cars.
“And then I’m thinking from next year onwards the cars are going to be slower, so at least I’ve got to drive the fastest generation of cars.”
