Nico Hülkenberg will participate in his 200th F1 Grand Prix in Mexico
Nico Hülkenberg will take part in his 200th career start at the Mexico Grand Prix. Looking back on his F1 career.
Symbolically, Nico Hülkenberg will surpass, in terms of Grand Prix participation, Alain Prost and his 199 races. The German driver has returned to Formula 1 this season as the main driver for Haas. Nico Hülkenberg was a reserve driver for Racing Point and Aston Martin between 2020 and 2022. A look back at the turbulent career of the German driver.
Beginnings at Williams
Nico Hülkenberg made his Formula 1 debut with the Williams team in 2010. After several races, he scored his first career points at the British Grand Prix, at Silverstone. During the same season, he secured his first pole position at the Interlagos circuit. However, at the end of the season, his team chose not to renew his contract, thus ending his adventure with Williams after 19 race starts.
In 2011, Nico Hülkenberg made the decision to sign a contract as the third driver for the Force India team. During his first season in this role, he participated in 14 test sessions as a test driver. The following season, in 2012, he was promoted to the position of lead driver within the team. At the end of the entire 2012 championship, the German accumulated a total of 63 points, which positioned him in 11th place in the driver’s standings. At the end of his contract, he decided to join the Sauber team.
Return to Force India
Nico Hülkenberg has not left an indelible mark in the history of the Sauber team. The driver bearing number 27 struggled to score points and went through a drought period of 4 races. However, the second half of the season proved much more promising, especially with an excellent 4th place achieved. In the end, he finished his only season with the Swiss team in 10th position in the drivers’ standings, totaling 51 points.
After his brief stint at Sauber, Hulk eventually returned for three seasons at Force India. During his first year in 2014, he finished 9th in the championship. In the following seasons, he finished respectively in 10th and 9th place.
In 2016, Hülkenberg decided to break his contract with Force India to join the Renault team for the three seasons that followed. During this second contract, he participated in 58 Grand Prix for the Renault team.
Three seasons at Renault
In 2016, Hülkenberg joined the French team Renault, which aimed to fight for the 4th, even potentially the 3rd place in the constructors’ championship. His initial contract was for two seasons, with an option for an additional season. He scored his first points in the race for Renault at the Bahrain Grand Prix. In his first year with the yellow and black team, the German driver once again finished in 10th place in the drivers’ standings, accumulating a total of 43 points.
The following year, Hülkenberg achieved his best career season. He finished in 7th place in the World Championship, accumulating a total of 69 points in the race. After this season, Renault decided to activate the contract option for the year 2019. This would mark his last season at the wheel of the French single-seater. He finished in 12th place in the championship with 37 points. His adventure at Renault ended after 62 Grand Prix.
Despite his departure from F1, the German driver remains in people’s minds. While several drivers are ill with COVID-19 during the 2020 season, he takes the wheel at Racing Point again for 2 Grand Prix, those of the 70th anniversary of F1 and the Eiffel.
In the year 2021, he will become a reserve driver for Aston Martin and will get back in an F1 for yet another replacement at the very start of the 2022 season with the English team.
Return to F1 as a title holder
This year 2023, Nico Hülkenberg is officially back in Formula 1. The driver has signed a contract with the Haas team and has also been renewed for the 2024 season. At the moment, the German is in 15th place in the driver’s standings with nine points to his credit. He leads his teammate Kevin Magnussen by six units.
With a current total of 199 Grand Prix participations, Nico Hülkenberg will cross the 200 mark at the Mexican Grand Prix.
With 200 Grand Prix, he will become the 22nd driver with the most starts in F1 since the creation of the World Championship in 1950. 5 drivers from the 2023 Formula 1 grid have more starts than the German:
– Fernando Alonso: 375th GP
– Lewis Hamilton: 329th GP
– Sergio Perez: 254th GP
– Daniel Ricciardo: 236th GP
– Valtteri Bottas: 219th GP
