For many drivers facing a potential end to their Formula 1 career, the prospect of making inroads into other motorsport categories is a backup plan at best and a highly unwelcome distraction at worst.
If they feel they can continue in Formula 1, that's what they'll prioritise – admitting anything else is a sign of weakness, an impossible admission to potential Formula 1 employers that you're not fully focused on the game.
Kevin Magnussen is well aware that his Formula 1 career could be over – but he insists there are options to stay on the grid.
But for him, the idea of a racing life outside Formula 1 is not a nuisance, but a wake-up call.
The fact that Uli Biermann's confirmation as a Haas F1 team member was widely heralded as imminent and was virtually treated as fact behind the scenes by almost everyone on the Austrian Grand Prix circuit last weekend doesn't change much for Magnussen, who will count various names among his ridiculous rivals this season.
The path ahead for Magnussen remains clear. If Haas fails to chase down Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas, Magnussen will likely take the seat by default. His case will certainly not be affected by the Austrian Grand Prix either, where he had an excellent race and a solid finish to finish last on Sunday.
He insists he is “fighting for a few seats,” not just Haas. And certainly, given Audi’s public struggle to find a teammate for Nico Hulkenberg, it might be better off just moving on from the already-well-functioning Haas lineup.
But the way Magnussen talks about his racing career, it's hard to see how staying in Formula 1 could give him what he wants – and give us any narrative satisfaction.
Speaking about it in Austria last weekend, Magnussen described his F1 career so far as a “long journey”, suggesting a certain amount of fatigue.
“I've been in the middle of the field almost every year since I've been in Formula 1,” he said.
“I'm 31 years old, and I also started to think that if I ended my motorsport career after having just finished Formula 1 racing in the midfield, then maybe I would feel empty in some way too.
“I watch some of those races, you know, Le Mans, the Indy 500 — I see the guys who win those races, and they look so happy, you know?
Fortunately there is a great [life] “Outside Formula 1, I have been in it a few times, when I was not in Formula 1. It is a great life. I can say it is a bit difficult.”
The fact that Magnussen felt that way on Thursday at the Red Bull Ring doesn't mean he'll feel that way on Sunday, or today, or when it comes time to make a decision.
But it makes intuitive sense. In 2013, he won four races in a row (albeit with one disqualification for a post-race technical violation) to cap off a brilliant Formula Renault 3.5 campaign and enter Formula 1.
In his career before that, he won every year, sometimes almost every weekend. And in his career since then — just once, in IMSA during his post-Haas Formula 1 hiatus, in a Chip Ganassi-run Cadillac DPi at Detroit in 2021.
He gave up that drive in a heartbeat to return to Formula 1. He doesn't seem like someone who would easily make the same decision again.
“When I think about my future, I don’t feel like I would live my whole life if I didn’t race in Formula 1. I feel a bit the opposite.
“It costs a lot to be in Formula 1. Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it. Because it’s 24 races, and because I’m a family man, it’s expensive – it’s not just about those 24 races, it’s about so many other things. It fills your whole year.
“It is not easy to do anything else. I am passionate about many things. Especially in motorsport of course, but also outside motorsport.
“The dream was always to succeed in Formula 1, to win races and championships in Formula 1. But, you know, after 10 years in the sport and not really getting there, maybe… maybe it gets old.”
Remember the Daytona 24 Hours race he was scheduled to race in with his father Jan, which was derailed by a bag on his hand? Remember his first appearance in the same race two years ago, the first in which he could have won without a flat tire?
“I think there's a lot to be said for winning races. I haven't done that for a long time. I miss it,” he added.
These words have been interpreted as confirmation that Magnussen has indeed come to terms with the idea of leaving Formula 1. But to me, this seems a bit selective – given that he also confirmed that he saw “a lot of potential” at Haas but had not fully realised it over the course of a full season, and that he would like to do so with the team he has been part of for so long, albeit intermittently.
If someone is coming for Magnussen, and if he still feels the desire to race in all the Formula 1 races, he owes it to no one to say no. He doesn’t have a huge responsibility to “make room for the next generation” or anything like that – it’s easy to say there is, but only when you’re talking about someone else’s career and lifelong dream.
But he says he has “no regrets” about his time in Formula 1. “I don't feel like I've achieved much in Formula 1 – but when you look at it from another perspective, the fact that I've been in the sport for so long is actually kind of an achievement, you know?”
After 174 races, he’s 33rd on the all-time list. If he completes the season without a race ban – which is a bit doubtful, but still – he’ll be level with Nigel Mansell! Yes, there’s a lot of context for each era, but this is truly impressive.
But extending his Grand Prix career beyond the end of the year is likely to be just a plus in terms of his longevity.
If he stays at Haas, he should have a good chance to cement his place against the upstart Biermann. If he moves to somewhere like Audi, he will have the chance to try and change the narrative around him against Hulkenberg. But he will by no means become the first to secure a top spot.
You can never say 'nothing' in Formula 1, but there is no clear path for Magnussen to achieve more success in his Grand Prix career than he has already achieved – almost no matter what he does.
Austria showed he still has a lot to offer Formula 1. But not enough for any Formula 1 team to give him the winning feeling he admits he misses so much.
