Calm and composed drive by Hulkenberg saves Renault's day

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It was a tale of opposing fortunes for Renault at Silverstone with Nico Hulkenberg delivering a solid haul of points and Carlos Sainz's afternoon cut short by a crash.

Hulkenberg capitalized on an excellent start and skillfully steered clear of the opening lap chaos to move up from eleventh to sixth.

The German kept his cool for the remainder of the race, making the most of his one-stop strategy and keeping his immediate mid-field rivals at bay to secure P6 and the honorary title of best of the rest.

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"I’m very happy, that was a positive day. I think it was the maximum result we could ask for here," said Hulkenberg.

"We had a good start, then a solid first lap straight up to P6. There was obviously some chaos going on in turns two and three where I managed to sneak through and pick up some places.

"After that it was a case of managing the tyres and the race. We’d elected to go on the Hard tyre, which was maybe a bit slower on pace, but we wanted to go for the one stop," he added.

"A strong race all in all, especially with picking up another position at the end when the Red Bull spun. I’m happy. Eight points for the team is a good day."

Team mate Carlos Sainz adopted a cautious approach to his opening lap but it paid off nicely as he progressed from P16 to P9 on the opening lap while a few of his rivals fell to the side.

The Spaniard, running on a two-stop strategy, also put himself in the hunt for points but stumbled while attempting to overtake Haas' Romain Grosjean into Copse on lap 38 of 52.

"I had a great start jumping seven places from sixteenth to ninth," he said.

"We lost some positions after the first pit-stop but then, after stopping again for the Soft tyre during the Safety Car, we were looking good to get back in the points.

"It was a shame for it to end like that. Let’s look forward to Hockenheim."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.