Nico Hülkenberg secured Sauber’s best Formula 1 result since 2022 with P5 in Spain, proving the impact of key upgrades.
Hülkenberg delivered Sauber F1’s best result since 2022, and his own best finish since the 2019 Italian Grand Prix when he was driving for Renault, by finishing fifth at the Spanish Grand Prix this Sunday.
“Today, everything came together. A very good start, an excellent first lap where I gained positions, and that laid a solid foundation for the race. The car was strong, with good pace and balance, and the upgrades paid off,” said the German, who crossed the line in sixth but benefited from a penalty handed to Max Verstappen.
“Before the safety car, we were expecting to be in eighth, and the safety car really reshuffled the race. Being knocked out in Q1 with fresh tyres today turned out to be the key. It’s a bit ironic, but that’s how it is.”
Hülkenberg even had the satisfaction of overtaking Lewis Hamilton during the race, though he downplayed the move: “He was on worn soft tyres, I was on new ones, and that makes a big difference. It was fun, but we are not really competing with the top teams. Still, we’ve made a step forward to fight in the midfield.”
Gabriel Bortoleto finished twelfth and regretted a poor tyre choice at the start: “It was a very solid race, and we did what we could. I had a good start, the team executed a good strategy, but the safety car didn’t play in our favour.”
“But that’s how it goes. We had decent pace today. We started on worn softs, and maybe that wasn’t the best decision because we saw those who started on fresh tyres had an advantage.”
“But the team made a very good step forward this weekend. Nico scored points, and that shows the potential of the car. We’ll leave here feeling confident ahead of Canada, and I’m looking forward to it.”
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