Renault: a crash “hard to digest” for Hülkenberg

He was warned, but he too made a mistake. Competing for a very good position, Nico Hülkenberg slipped on the 40th lap. Before him, Sainz, Hamilton, and Leclerc had also made errors on the asphalt runoff of the penultimate turn, which had become a real skating rink with stagnant water. Too ambitious, the Renault driver tried to get back on track immediately by accelerating. A fatal error: becoming the passenger of an uncontrollable car, Hülkenberg ended his race in the barrier, stuck in the gravel trap.

“I’m upset, just as I am for the team and Renault,” the driver told journalists, frowning. “They deserved a great result. It was one of those days where you can’t falter, and I’m disappointed with how it all ended, especially in front of my home crowd. It’s hard to swallow.”

This image is therefore the last for Hülkenberg in a race that was interesting up to that point, with the German having executed a great strategy with two stops, intermediates each time, and a momentary second place. Overtaken by Mercedes drivers Bottas and Hamilton, Hülkenberg had fallen to fourth but could hope for a mishap from one of the three drivers ahead to climb onto the first podium of his career. All this before the crash on the 40th lap, explained by the Renault driver:

The last corner was soaked, and therefore very tricky. The rear slightly slipped away from me, I spun out, opened my trajectory, and found myself on this stretch of black asphalt. It was like ice, and I couldn’t stop the car anymore. We were doing phenomenal work with a very difficult strategy, so it hurts even more, and it will be even worse on Monday.

Finally, the bad streak for Hülkenberg continues, with 167 starts in Formula 1 without a podium, a record in the field!

Ricciardo lays down his arms without a fight

For his part, the Australian couldn’t even take advantage of the bizarre scenario, suffering from a new engine failure. Daniel Ricciardo didn’t make it past the fifteenth lap, forced to park his Renault in an escape route.

« We encountered an exhaust issue that caused my retirement. I saw a lot of smoke at the back of my car, and that was the end. It’s really a shame. » In any case, this retirement is the fourth of the season for the former Red Bull driver, in eleven races. There is no doubt, however, that “the Honey Badger” would have enjoyed this epic race at Hockenheim. A feeling confirmed by the main person concerned:

I watched the rest of the race and it looked very fun. I would have loved to be there as there was room to score big points. The final result is cruel for the team, but we hope things will get better for us in Hungary.

In the end, it’s yet another zero points (the fifth of the season!) for the French team following the German Grand Prix. With a week to go before the break, the bill is becoming steep: Renault is now sixth in the constructors’ standings, trailing McLaren by 31 points and now overtaken by Toro Rosso by 3 points.

The final result is harsh for the team, but we hope things will be better for us in Hungary.
Find our report on the #GermanGP.
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— Renault F1 Team (@RenaultF1Team) July 28, 2019