Kevin Magnussen seemed to be the next big thing when he finished second place in his first appearance at the 2014 season opener in Australia, but hasn't returned to the podium since and has never fulfilled the potential some thought he once had.
Image: McLaren media
The Danish driver first made himself known to the Formula 1 world at the 2012 Abu Dhabi young drivers test where he topped the time sheets with McLaren and impressed sporting director Sam Michael.
In 2013, Magnussen won the Formula Renault 3.5 Championship, beating Stoffel Vandoorne (another future McLaren driver) to the championship by a dominant 60 points. This gave McLaren one final piece of evidence to give Magnussen a Formula 1 drive.
In the pre-season tests ahead of the 2014 season, Magnussen topped the time sheets, once again confirming his strong pace. He followed this up with a fourth placed grid position for the opening race of the season.
After a composed drive, Magnussen crossed the line third and was later promoted to second after Daniel Ricciardo was disqualified. Despite many more points finishes (albeit being mostly nineth or tenth position), Magnussen was dropped at the end of the season and replaced by Fernando Alonso.
This was the first major blow for Magnussen who had arrived with much anticipation at the start of the 2014 season with McLaren, and now was to sit on the side-lines as the McLaren reserve driver for the 2015 season with no opportunity to prove himself.
However, this was not the case, as Manor and the new entry Haas were reportedly in talks with the Dane over a 2016 drive but nothing came to anything.
Image: Motorsport Images
Formula 1 wasn't the only option for Magnussen as he tested a Mercedes DTM car and a Porsche LMP1 car during his period of searching for a 2016 drive. It is also believed that Magnussen entered talks with Indy Car team, Bryan Herta Autosport.
However, Magnussen would end up with a Formula 1 drive with Renault, who had re-entered the sport following a four year absence, after problems between Pastor Maldonado and the team emerged.
The Danish driver did not have a good start to the season, having an incident heavy opening to his season and even collided with rookie teammate Jolyon Palmer at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Magnussen achieved just two points finishes over the season and finished 16th in the championship with seven points.
He made the move to Haas for the 2017 season, the team he had discussed with for the previous season and it now seemed Magnussen's potential may never be fulfilled.
Magnussen has since achieved a pole position at a weather affected 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying, which was the teams first and so far only pole position.
Image: Haas media
With Kevin Magnussen at risk for the 2025 season, this season could mark the last season we see him on the Formula 1 grid, a talented driver who never lived up to his potential.