Tempers flared at the NASCAR race in San Diego as Noah Gragson and Kevin Magnussen found themselves in a heated confrontation after the race. The former F1 driver, who was making his Cup Series debut, then revealed what went down. 

Magnussen's debut race did not pan out the way he would have wanted it to. During the race, he banged wheels with Gragson a few times.

A considerable hit came near the end of Stage 2, with 37 laps to go in the race. The former Haas F1 driver got on the inside of Gragson and pushed the No. 4 Front Row Motorsports driver into the wall, ending his race. 

Post-race, the two drivers had an expletive-laden confrontation on the pit road as Gragson felt Magnussen had wronged him. When asked by the media later what Gragson had to say to him, Magnussen replied (via Frontstretch): 

"A whole lot of stuff I can't say on camera."

When asked if he had been in such a confrontation with other drivers in the past, Magnussen responded, saying:

"No, I've not. But I've watched NASCAR before, so I know that's how you guys play it. It is what it is. He was playing a bit stupid out there. He could have had a good race, but he chose not to"

During the race, Magnussen recorded the fastest lap. For most of the event, he kept a clean race and finished 27th, and on the lead lap. Despite the clash with Gragson, the former F1 star seemed happy with his race.

Kevin Magnussen reflects on chaotic NASCAR debut

Kevin Magnussen made his NASCAR debut at a tricky track, that too on the series' first visit there. He raced in  No. 91 Trackhouse Racing Chevy, which is the same project that helped Shane van Gisbergen enter the sport.

Post-race, the Danish driver described his experience in detail, saying: 

"I felt like I was in a fist fight the whole race through. Honestly, everyone was driving so well. It's tough racing. You can't mess around; you'll find out. I like that kind of racing. Big respect to everyone, except for that one guy [Gragson], but I'll deal with that." 

As of now, it remains unclear if Magnussen will be making an NASCAR appearance in the future or if it will be a one-off gig like his father Jan Magnussen did back in 2010 at Sonoma.

While the clash with Gragson took center stage, Kevin Magnussen seemed to have enjoyed the aggressive nature of NASCAR.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yash Kotak