Nico Hülkenberg was ecstatic after securing his first podium finish in his career on Sunday. The German finally ended his negative record streak with his third place at Silverstone.
The 37-year-old Hülkenberg had been the record holder for years when it came to the most Grands Prix driven without a podium. That dubious honor now goes to Adrian Sutil, who drove 128 Grands Prix without ever being allowed onto the podium.
Hülkenberg took his first podium finish in his 239th Formula 1 race in a spectacular race. Only McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri crossed the finish line earlier.
“It took a while, didn’t it?!” Hülkenberg joked, who debuted in Formula 1 fifteen years ago. “What a race this was. We came from practically last place and did it perfectly. These were crazy conditions, it was about surviving the entire race. But we were really good, we didn’t make any mistakes.”
Hülkenberg did not dare to dream that he would actually take a podium until the last pit stop. “When I heard afterwards that we had a good margin on Lewis, I knew it was possible. At the same time, I knew that Lewis would give everything for his home crowd, but today it really turned out to be my day.”
‘Timing of every pit stop was perfect’
Hülkenberg, who started as nineteenth, spoke highly of his team’s tactical choices. “The timing of every pit stop was perfect. For example, at that last pit stop, we stopped a lap later than Hamilton. That turned out to be crucial, by staying out longer we gained several seconds.”
“It all still feels very unreal, especially because we had such a bad day yesterday and were very disappointed. I will need a few more days to let it all sink in.”
Max Verstappen finished fifth in the chaotic British Grand Prix. The Formula 1 season will be continued in three weeks with the Belgian Grand Prix.