Nico Hulkenberg may have put in an impressive performance at the Chinese Grand Prix, but that didn't prevent him from rewriting F1 history in a way he didn't want to see.
Hulkenberg is a veteran of the F1 grid, having made his debut in 2010, and to this day is regarded as one of the strongest natural talents. But in one corner of the F1 record books, his experience is working against him.
Nico Hulkenberg continues his relationship with Andrea de Cesaris
Hulkenberg's Chinese Grand Prix appearance was his 208th in F1, but as he has not won any of them, he has equaled the record of Andrea de Cesaris, who has not won most races. . Despite his talent, Hulkenberg has incredibly never been on the podium in F1.
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However, when it comes to actual performance levels, such statistics can be very misleading. Hulkenberg got off to a very impressive start with a 10th place finish in China, continuing his F1 season in 2024, as the Haas driver secured points from Shanghai to ensure he improved on his season record. Up to 4.
Haas team-mate Kevin Magnussen has only scored one point so far this season, but in the nightmarish Chinese Grand Prix he collided with RB Yuki Tsunoda and was given a 10-second time penalty. was forced to retire.
Meanwhile, Hulkenberg was pleased with his solid points-scoring drive, calling it a “perfect” performance that strengthens Haas' current seventh place in the 2024 F1 Constructors' Championship.
“Today was a perfect, clean race for me,” he said.
“I think it was a well-managed, well-controlled race by the team. That's positive and I'm very happy. We got one point today.
“One of the top five teams' cars” [Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin] They had problems and that was the spot we earned. Otherwise it's not really possible to race with them.
“It also shows us that to be here today we had to have a perfect qualifying on Saturday and a perfect race on Sunday. We couldn't have done anything better. In our world, 1 There are a lot of points.”
As the season heads to its next battleground, the Miami Grand Prix, the chances of avoiding setting a new record for most F1 races without wins are certainly not in Hulkenberg's favor.
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