Magnussen to make Indycar debut

Kevin Magnussen will step up into Indycar this weekend.

As he lost his Formula 1 seat with Haas at the end of last year, the Dane said he would hopefully use his move into US sports cars as a springboard to the country’s premier open-wheel category.

"My father has been racing in the States for 20 years and I’ve been to many races with him," said the 28-year-old at the time.

"You never know what the future holds."

Magnussen is getting his one-off chance after McLaren’s Indycar regular Felix Rosenqvist was ruled out of the Road America event following a stuck throttle and major crash in Detroit.

"It really sucks to miss out at Road America, but I have to focus on getting back to 100 percent," Rosenqvist said.

"Meanwhile it’s great to see Kevin Magnussen get a shot at Indycar."

Magnussen said it will be a "big challenge to go straight into a race having never driven an Indycar before".

"But I couldn’t say no to the opportunity," he added.

Meanwhile, as predicted on Tuesday, Alpine has confirmed that Esteban Ocon is staying with the Renault-owned Formula 1 team on a new "three-year agreement".