PSCR: Jan Magnussen Tests with Panoz Motor Sports

26 November 1998

During the course of the tests, Magnussen posted the quickest time ever in a car around the Road Atlanta circuit, driving a 1998 Panoz GTR-1 in Petit LeMans trim.

The first session on Monday, November 23, was stopped by an afternoon rain shower but the tests concluded Tuesday morning, November 24. During the two half-day sessions, Magnussen completed a total of 118 laps and logged 297 miles.

"We're very happy with the test results and very impressed with Jan," says Tony Dowe, Managing Director of Panoz Motor Sports. "By Jan's own admission he was a bit rusty, since he'd only done a single Porsche Cup race since his last drive for the Stewart F1 team at the Montreal Grand Prix in June. We had no mechanical problems during the tests as we continue to develop the cars for the 1999 American LeMans Series."

Magnussen, 25, from Denmark, came to prominence after a very successful karting career, winning the World Karting Championship in 1990. He followed that with a Formula Ford championship, a season of Formula Vauxhall in Europe, and then signed with Paul Stewart Racing to compete in the British Formula 3 championship in 1994.

Magnussen's 1994 season, when he posted 14 victories in 18 starts, landed him a stint as a McLaren test driver. He was also signed by Mercedes to drive in the German Touring Car (DTM/TC) series, where he finished second in the DTM championship even after his season was interrupted with a broken leg.

He made his F1 debut in 1995 with Pacific Grand Prix and in 1996 he substituted for an injured Emerson Fittipaldi in three IndyCar races before signing on with Stewart Grand Prix in 1997. In his final race for Stewart Grand Prix, Magnussen posted a sixth-place finish -- his best finish in the Stewart-Ford.