Kevin Magnussen is expecting to be on the grid for the Italian Grand Prix in a week’s time.
The Dane suffered a cut to his ankle after losing control of his Renault at the top of Raidillon on Sunday, hitting the tyre barriers at very high speed.
Vine: https://vine.co/v/5er3iFgUqYx
Indeed, such was the impact of what is now an increasingly rare crash at the famous Eau Rouge section, the race had to be suspended as repair work to the tyre wall was carried out.
Magnussen, who had taken advantage of the chaotic start to move into the top 10, went to the medical centre for a check-up after having to be assisted away from the crash site.
Later he would post a tweet giving an update on his situation:
Twitter: Thanks for all your messages folks! On my way home now with a sore ankle but will be ready for Monza
https://t.co/7CH5DttYpw (@KevinMagnussen)
Renault team boss Fred Vasseur was a little more conservative repeating Magnussen’s confidence but saying the team would wait a couple of days to ensure no further flare up.
Should the Dane be unable to race it would create an interesting situation for the Enstone team.
Their 2016 reserve driver Esteban Ocon made his race debut with Manor at Spa-Francorchamps and is under contract for the rest of the season.
With no replacement, it is possible the French teen could simply slot back in at Renault with Rio Haryanto getting another outing at Monza.
Magnussen’s incident at Eau Rouge was once again a testament to the safety of modern Formula One cars, his RS16 was left reminiscent of Fernando Alonso’s McLaren in Australia but in both situations, the drivers were largely unharmed.
The team have confirmed, however, an entirely new car will have to be made to race at the Italian Grand Prix.
