Hülkenberg: “Sutil deserves to be in F1”
Nico Hülkenberg was appointed as a full-time driver for the 2012 season with the Force India team, replacing his fellow German Adrian Sutil. However, he believes that the latter deserves to remain in Formula 1.
After a year spent in the shadow of the main drivers at Force India, Nico Hülkenberg managed to secure a spot on the starting grid for the 2012 season with the Indian team.
However, his appointment hastened the sidelining of Adrian Sutil, 29, who had been with the team since 2008, which was successively called Midland (in 2006 and 2007), Spyker (in 2008), and finally Force India (since 2009).
Parasitized by a criminal case that led to an 18-month suspended prison sentence, Adrian Sutil has not managed to regain the confidence of his employer or find refuge with another team, which is unfortunate in Hülkenberg’s eyes: « Adrian certainly deserves a cockpit, more than some other current drivers. »
Even after having largely dominated his teammate Paul di Resta in 2011, Sutil was replaced by his compatriot Hülkenberg. The latter denies, in this regard, any deterioration of the relationship with his predecessor: « There is absolutely no animosity between Adrian and me. »
Like some of his peers, Hülkenberg highlights the situation of pay drivers who bring a significant budget to secure a seat: I’m one of the few drivers in Formula 1 who doesn’t need to bring money to drive. But the fact that there are so many experienced drivers without a seat proves how brutal this sport is.
That’s why Nico’s objective in 2013 will be to retain a racing seat: « At the end of the year, I don’t want to have to worry about my seat for next year. »
