Kevin Magnussen could be emerging as a shock late candidate to sign for Audi-owned Sauber in 2025.
It is the last genuine vacancy on the Formula 1 grid for next year, but negotiations with potential teammates for Nico Hulkenberg - including incumbent Valtteri Bottas - are significantly delayed.
Some think the delay is because Audi is also in complex negotiations for potential loan deals with Williams and McLaren over highly-rated rookies Franco Colapinto and Gabriel Bortoleto respectively.
But others think the deep financial crisis of Audi’s owner Volkswagen may also be playing a role, amid reports the German giant is set to close three road car factories, axe jobs and cut pay by 10 percent.
In that context, a resurgent Magnussen - who has been left out of Haas’ 2025 driver lineup and will be replaced by Esteban Ocon - could be an ideal and affordable solution for Audi-Sauber.
The 32-year-old Dane has played no significant role in the 2024-2025 driver ’silly season’, given that he has been consistently outpaced by current Haas teammate Hulkenberg.
However, at the wheel of Haas’ latest car upgrades, Magnussen is suddenly impressing - even standing head and shoulders above Hulkenberg’s pace in Mexico.
Auto Motor und Sport, an influential German specialist publication, gave Magnussen a 10 out of 10 score for his P7 finish on Sunday - just behind triple world champion Max Verstappen.
"In this form, the Dane should stay in Formula 1," Auto Motor und Sport declared.
"With P7 on the grid, he was less than two tenths behind Lewis Hamilton," the analysis added. "In the final laps of the race, Magnussen even caught up with Verstappen and crossed the line only four seconds after the Dutchman.
"In this form, the veteran is one of the candidates for the second Sauber cockpit. He is definitely better than Valtteri Bottas at the moment."
Magnussen thinks the earlier-specification Haas cars simply didn’t suit his style.
"We have made some changes to the brakes, for example," he said. "It just made me very confident in the car. Now I just have to try to hold on to that confidence, because something strange has happened in the last two races, which has given me a car that I can really push," Magnussen told Ekstra Bladet.
Haas boss Ayao Komatsu agrees that Magnussen deserves to find another seat elsewhere for 2025.
"His pace in the second stint (in Mexico) was incredible," said the Japanese. "He overtook Verstappen and finished just four seconds behind him at the end. It might be the best I’ve seen Kevin drive."