Magnussen: "F1 has to put safety before sexy"

F1 must defer to "safety" over "sexy" when it comes to preventing more deaths, according to Kevin Magnussen. It emerged after a meeting in Monaco last week that the sport has now decided to push ahead with introducing the controversial 'halo' concept for cockpit protection in 2017.

It is believed the 2017 version will be made of titanium and more elegant than the 'halo' tested by Ferrari earlier this season, but many preferred Red Bull's alternative 'aeroscreen' concept. "It's hard to judge without having tried them," Renault driver Magnussen told the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. "The screen looks nicer than the halo, but fortunately it's not up to me to make these decisions."

As for claims the cockpit coverings are too ugly for a sport that should be attractive and glamorous, Magnussen answered: "Formula one should be sexy, but we also need to do everything we can for safety. I don't really want it, but I also don't want myself or anyone else to die. So if it helps with safety then you have to introduce it," he said.

What Magnussen is fully supportive of are in the new tyre and chassis regulations for 2017. "I think the cars should be faster," he agreed. "They've been getting slower and slower since 2004 while safety has been getting better and better. I would have preferred that while safety is going up, so too is the speed of the cars." (GMM)