“See how fast it goes”: Hülkenberg still finds a job in Formula 1


Nico Hülkenberg is no longer a regular driver, but the German driver is not giving up his Formula 1 dream. Mercedes and Aston Martin have secured Hülkenberg’s services as substitute drivers for the 2021 season. He has repeatedly proven that this role suits him well.

Nico Hülkenberg would have much preferred another solution than not being able to regularly sit in the racing car in the 2021 Formula 1 season. The 33-year-old also thinks pragmatically. After the hope for a cockpit at Red Bull Racing was not fulfilled, “I had to look for the next best one”. So the next best opportunity not to lose sight of the premier class. And after Hülkenberg was used as a substitute at Racing Point on three race weekends last season, it only seems logical that the team, which has now been renamed Aston Martin, officially makes him a substitute driver. Because the goal is still: “Regular cockpit for 2022”.

Born in Emmerich, this is what the “Bild” revealed and sees himself as a “man for all cases”. A call to Mercedes is also possible if Lewis Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas miss one of the 23 races planned for 2021. However, Hülkenberg is only planned there if the reserve drivers Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne are also indisposed because they are active in the all-electric Formula E.

“I think the best thing I can do is stick with it and be there when such a door opens,” summarizes the 179-time Grand Prix starter, who has not been a new one with Renault since his contract ended in 2019 Has found a permanent position in Formula 1. Probably also because the ten teams are increasingly relying on young drivers for new appointments – with the exception of Alpine, the French brought the 39-year-old Fernando Alonso, who had two world championship titles in 2005 and 2006 with the Renault team at the time.

The trend is towards youth

Such successes are missing in Hülkenberg’s Formula 1 vita, which holds the record for most starts without a podium finish. His quality is still undisputed, which he proved with strong performances in his temporary assignments in the past season. Apart from Alonso, free cockpits are currently mostly given to young drivers, with Haas newbies Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin and Alpha Tauri rookie Yuki Tsunoda, half of the current grid is 25 years or younger.

Nevertheless, Hülkenberg does not see his Formula 1 career as over yet, a change to DTM and a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which he won in 2015 in a Porsche, are “not yet planned”. Instead, he is commenting on Formula 1 for the Austrian broadcaster Servus TV, which is part of Red Bull, and is betting on the one hand to stay in touch with the commitments at Mercedes and Aston Martin and on the other hand “certainly also to learn something”, as he says in the “Bild” .

The chances that Hülkenberg will get back into a racing car as a temporary worker in 2021 should not be underestimated. A quick end to the corona pandemic is not in sight, in the previous year the 33-year-old moved up three times due to corona infections at Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll. And Formula 1 is planning more appointments than ever before with 23 race weekends, so there are hardly any breather breaks apart from the four-week summer break in August. And, according to Hülkenberg: “We saw how fast it can go.”

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