F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Hulkenberg had 'flashback' of Brazil 2010 in quali

Nico Hulkenberg says Saturday’s wet-to-dry qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix, reminded him of the 2010 Brazilian GP where the Force India ace, then driving for Williams, had grabbed pole position.

The German was the first driver to gamble on slicks on a drying track in Q3 and held provisional pole several times before he had to settle for the third quickest time behind the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

However, Hulkenberg gets promoted to the front row since the current F1 points leader has to serve a five-place grid penalty for using a new gearbox following his FP3 crash.

“Actually, it reminded me a lot of Brazil,” Hulkenberg said. “I was feeling really good in the car. And it was just a flashback to back then... To be honest I was expecting a little bit better.

“When I heard third, I was not disappointed but… great effort from the team. That was not an easy session to be out there on the right time.

“Obviously, it’s all about timings. The car performed well. We put it together. It was a very solid job and a very good starting position on Sunday.”

The only caveat to Hulkenberg lining up on the front row is that the former Le Mans winner is under investigation for improving under yellow flags at the end of Q1.

QUALIFYING REPORT: Hamilton on pole from Hulkenberg and Button in Austria

AS IT HAPPENED: Austrian Grand Prix - Qualifying

F1i Classic: Penske's emotional Austrian GP win

Silbermann says ... Gin is the only tonic

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Julien Billiotte

Recent Posts

Marko: ‘No chance at all’ for Red Bull in Las Vegas

Helmut Marko believes that Red Bull and Max Verstappen are unlikely to challenge for victory…

4 hours ago

GM revives bid to join F1 with accelerated talks for 2026 entry

Automotive giant General Motors is reportedly back in the game as a potential entrant in…

6 hours ago

Las Vegas GP: Thursday's action in pictures

The opening day of running at the Las Vegas GP was a smooth but chilly…

7 hours ago

Williams' headaches persist into Vegas practice

Williams is continuing to fight uphill battles this weekend in Las Vegas as a knock-on…

8 hours ago

Ferrari's Sainz 'not satisfied with where we are' in Vegas

It was a solid start to the Las Vegas weekend for Ferrari with Carlos Sainz…

9 hours ago

Norris labels McLaren long-run pace ‘shocking’ in chilly Vegas

Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of McLaren’s performance on the opening day…

11 hours ago