Hulkenberg's Strongest Drives Didn't Grab Headlines

Monday, 08 January 2024 at 00:00

Nico Hulkenberg said in a recent interview he had some very strong races throughout the 2023 season, but they didn't grab headlines because he drives at the back of the grid.

The 2023 season was one of the Worst for Haas in the history of the team in terms of the Championship results, but it did not seem as bad on track.

The team struggled with tire wear, which resulted in Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen always falling down the grid eventually, but they weren't too far off everybody's pace.

Haas drivers, and mainly Hulkenberg, managed to show their driving skills mainly during qualifying sessions where they weren't limited by a tire wear issue over the course of one flying lap.

The German driver made it to the top ten many times and during the Canadian Grand Prix, he qualified in an amazing second place.

Read also

Verstappen Defends Haas Drivers: 'Don't Think They Are Idiots'

However, that was probably his most memorable moment of the season, as he couldn't do much as soon as every race evolved beyond the tenth lap.

Valtteri Bottas said it is challenging for drivers at the back of the grid to show what they've got, and Hulk seems to share a similar view. He explained to the media:

"I feel there were a couple of really strong drives [at the end of the season], but they were P12, P13, so they don't grab the headlines."

The 36-year-old's best result of the season has been seventh place during the Australian Grand Prix. While he couldn't achieve more, he said he was happy about maximizing his car's potential.

"But I know that I maximised the potential of what we had and that's important for me to know and feel that."

Haas's team principal said that with F1 teams so closely matched, Haas could be at the top of the mid-field next season. Maybe Hulkenberg will get his chance to grab headlines in 2024.