Kevin Magnussen obtained the complete NASCAR expertise in his Cup Collection debut on the San Diego road course, highlighted by a multi-lap showdown with Entrance Row Motorsports driver Noah Gragson.
And whereas the on-track slugfest ended with a crash midway via the race race, that was removed from the entire story. NASCAR has compiled over seven minutes value of onboard video and radio, showcasing each tense on-track second between Magnussen and Gragson, which in the end led to the crash and the post-race confrontation. We’ll present extra context and lap-by-lap breakdown beneath the footage.
Watch: Full recap of NASCAR conflict between Magnussen and Gragson
Gragson radio: After being advised that it is Magnussen within the No. 91 behind him, Gragson replies: “Yeah, f*** him.” This instantly preceded the primary notable contact between the 2, however that they had been battling slightly bit earlier than that.
Lap 25 contact: Whereas racing for thirty third place, Magnussen strikes to the within of Gragson, who defends, and Magnussen runs instantly into the again of him. They enter the subsequent straightaway side-by-side, and Gragson doorways Magnussen, who lifts.
Lap 26 overtake try: Magnussen makes an attempt to move Gragson once more below braking into Flip 2, and Gragson once more blocks, inflicting Magnussen to once more elevate. He continues to indicate the nostril via the subsequent set of corners, with Gragson aggressively defending.
Lap 26 move and make contact with: On the finish of that very same lap, Magnussen lastly lunges up the within of Gragson, clearing him into the ultimate chicane. Gragson then throttles up into the right-rear of Magnussen’s automotive, retaking the place.
Magnussen radio below Lap 30 warning: “I am caught behind this man. I do not know who he’s. I bumped him, however he turned down in entrance of me, so he is not precisely a thinker. I am going to clear him sooner or later, after which we obtained some good tempo.”
Lap 32 restart contact: Beginning side-by-side for a restart, Gragson crowds Magnussen they usually slam doorways. Moments later, the leaders crash forward, placing the race again below warning.
Gragson pulls forward below warning: NASCAR ordered the race be halted for wall repairs after the big accident, which eradicated pre-race favourite Shane van Gisbergen. Simply earlier than the sector got here to a cease, Gragson handed a number of vehicles and pulled forward of Magnussen earlier than giving him the center finger.
Gragson on the radio throughout purple flag: “How’s my again bumper look when the #91 simply piledrove me into (Flip) 12?” The group gave Gragson an evaluation, and famous that they felt just like the contact was ‘coming’ when Magnussen obtained to Gragson. He replies: “Yeah, all these F1 d****heads simply assume they get fenders and a f*** bumper they usually simply drive within the inside and simply barrel into everybody. F*** had it.”
Magnussen on the radio throughout purple flag: “Yeah, he is fairly sad, however I imply, what can I do. Gotta recover from it sooner or later.” He later asks a couple of doable technique to overtake Gragson within the pits, saying: “I believe if we will clear him within the pits, that will be most popular. I believe he is gonna take us out as quickly as we get previous him. He is gonna bump us within the subsequent nook.” The group informs Magnussen that regardless that Gragson stopped in entrance of him, the operating order will put him again forward for the restart. Magnussen replies: “Okay. Yeah, he is not letting me previous below warning. He simply went in entrance and braked, so yeah, (laughing)…simply information me via it.”
Slamming doorways below warning: After the temporary stoppage, Gragson continued to poke at Magnussen below warning, bumping into the again of him earlier than they slammed doorways. Gragson’s group cautioned him to be sensible with the #91 automotive.
Magnussen radio after contact: The group tells Magnussen that Gragson “shouldn’t be very sensible, as you see,” with Magnussen replying: “Effectively, he is obtained a race to do, so hopefully he’ll recover from himself.”
Lap 34 restart heavy contact: In NASCAR, you may select which lane to restart in, and Gragson selected to start out instantly behind Magnussen. Going into Flip 3 on the hectic restart that adopted, Gragson slammed into the again of Magnussen below braking, knocking him into the vehicles forward. The Trackhouse spotter and crew chief started speaking to one another about how Gragson “straight up punted him.” They had been each operating within the mid-20s at this level. Gragson obtained alongside quickly after, dooring Magnussen down the straightaway. Quickly after, he slammed into the again of Magnussen once more as they filed via a decent right-hander. Magnussen stayed forward, and at last began to place vehicles between himself and Gragson.
Lap 37 move: On Lap 37, Gragson obtained again forward of Magnussen as they checked up for a spinning automotive, each avoiding it with out a lot drama.
Lap 38 crash: Magnussen obtained again beneath Gragson on the entrance of the sweeping Flip 4 right-hander, and whereas being crowded once more, he seemed to be completed with all the state of affairs and briefly throttled up, slamming into the right-rear of Gragson’s automotive. Gragson spun and crashed towards the skin wall, struggling race-ending injury. They had been battling for fifteenth place on the time.
Gragson on the radio: Extreme injury. Entrance toe hyperlink, entrance injury, steering’s off. #91 simply f****** destroyed us.
Gragson needs to return to the race: Whereas again within the storage space, Gragson requested the group if they may return to the race, even with the wounded race automotive, however officers mentioned no as a result of injury he sustained. And whereas he might have gained a small handful of factors, it is probably that his intentions had been extra aligned with payback…
Put up race confrontation
After which, after all, the now-viral post-race confrontation occurred. Gragson waited for Magnussen, they usually exchanged heated phrases for about 90 seconds earlier than going their separate methods. You’ll be able to watch that total interplay in full beneath:
Background particulars on Gragson and Magnussen
This feud has attracted quite a lot of consideration, and never everybody tuning in is aware of each of the drivers concerned, so we thought we’d give a quick backstory on each Okay-Magazine and Noah:
Noah Gragson information: Gragson has almost 130 begins in NASCAR Cup, and has but to achieve Victory Lane with a finest end of third. He presently competes for Entrance Row Motorsports, which is his third group since going full-time. His full-time Cup profession started with Legacy Motor Membership, however that ended mid-season after he was suspended for liking a racially insensitive meme on social media. He then moved on to Stewart-Haas Racing earlier than the group shut down, and has been with FRM because the begin of the 2025 season.
He’s a confirmed winner within the decrease divisions, with 13 NASCAR O’Reilly victories and two in Vans, however has by no means positioned increased than twenty fourth within the Cup standings. Gragson can be one of many greatest personalities within the storage. He likes to get together, hang around with followers, and sure, he is had a number of confrontations with different drivers — together with no fewer than three fights. Magnussen’s Trackhouse teammate Ross Chastain even punched him after a Cup race in Kansas through the 2023 season.
Kevin Magnussen information: The Danish driver spent a full decade racing in Formulation 1, driving for McLaren, Renault, and the Haas F1 group. Notably, he earned a podium end on debut within the 2014 Australian GP, and secured a pole place for Haas within the weather-impacted 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix. His finest season end result was ninth within the 2018 championship. He was additionally the primary driver to ever face a race ban for accumulating too many penalty factors on his Tremendous License, so he is by no means been shy about contact — even with out fenders. Drive to Survive followers can also keep in mind that time he infuriated Guenther Steiner after smashing a door.
In recent times, Magnussen ventured into the world of sports activities automotive racing, the place his father Jan has loved immense success. He has competed in each IMSA and WEC, the place he’s now full-time with the BMW Hypercar group. He simply competed within the 94th version of the Le Mans 24 earlier than coming to San Diego for his NASCAR Cup debut. He’s a winner in IMSA, and a podium finisher in WEC. Magnussen additionally ran one IndyCar race for Arrow McLaren in 2021, ending twenty fourth at Highway America.
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