With seventh place, Nico Hülkenberg scored his first points in Australia since his Formula 1 comeback with Haas. There could have been a lot more for the German if race control hadn’t restored the positions from before the chaotic restart. Nevertheless, the six points collected are worth their weight in gold for a team like Haas.
Hulkenberg is satisfied with his previous performances in the American team. He has his teammate Kevin Magnussen under control, especially in qualifying, where he leads 3-0 in the team-internal duel and even made it into Q3 twice – Magnussen never made it.
“I take a lot of positives from this weekend for the future,” says the German. “I feel like a lot of good things are happening. I feel fresh, positive and hungry.”
Hulkenberg emphasizes that he enjoys working with the team and experimenting with the car to get the best out of it. “We have a very good rhythm and momentum and we want to keep that and take it into the next races.”
Quickly used to success
With the first successes, the ambitions at Haas – and at Hülkenberg personally – also increase. “It was only my third race after a three-year break. It’s crazy and interesting how people get used to it and quickly become spoiled,” he says.
“I’ve now been in Q3 twice and eleventh once, Kevin got a point in Jeddah and I was in the points now too. If you look at it from the outside, it’s not a bad start to the season,” he emphasizes.
He also knows that Haas has had many difficult phases in recent years: After two ninth places in 2019 and 2020, they slipped to last place in 2021, being completely inferior. The upswing to seventh place followed in 2022, although it is also true that Haas scored just three points in the second half of the season.
The team parted ways with the inconstant Mick Schumacher and took on a pilot in Hülkenberg who has significantly more experience, even though he only sat on the bench for three years and made sporadic appearances.
Connection with the car grows
“Of course, the learning curve is steep for the team at the beginning of the season, but also for me,” says Hulkenberg. “So I’m delighted and confident that more good things lie ahead.”
“I felt good from the start. But we’re only into race three, so the connection between me and the car needs to grow. But I can feel it’s getting better and better. That’s nice.”
Haas is currently in seventh place in the team classification with seven points, but Hülkenberg knows that things can go up or down very quickly in the midfield of Formula 1: “You have the four or five teams in front, and then the remaining five teams in the Midfield. Backbenchers don’t really exist anymore,” he says.
“We’re all in a bubble within a few tenths of a second, so a small mistake can have a huge impact. But the other way around, you can also find yourself in the top 10 if things go well. It’s fun.”