Nico Hülkenberg was a record-holder in Formula One racing, but not in a way that would make anyone comfortable.
The German-born driver has been in F1 racing since 2010, but with 238 starts, not once did he get the opportunity to celebrate on the podium as one of the top three in any grand prix at the highest level of all motorsport. But 15 years later, at historic and famed Silverstone, where it all started, Hülkenberg finally got his chance to bask in the glory and spray champagne.
Hülkenberg entered the 2025 British Grand Prix with the longest streak of races entered without having gotten onto the podium, but everything changed at Silverstone. Yes, there were some extenuating circumstances, but the F1 journeyman finally achieved the momentous goal of being in the top three of a race.
Even so, after the race, he was relatively muted — mostly because he appeared to be in a bit of a state of shock.
“Happy, but yes, it’s a lot to take in to process,” Hülkenberg said. “It was a pretty intense race. I think Lando (Norris) put it pretty well — it’s so intense for us in the car in these changeable conditions in a damp track. You always feel you’re one foot in the wall when you’re exploring the limit and you’re trying to push.
“So yeah, very intense. Obviously, it was a distance battle with Lewis (Hamilton) at the end, who was obviously making up some ground. But not enough, luckily, for us in the end. So, everything comes together, big relief, very happy. Positive — very, very positive day. And from the massive low yesterday, being almost kind of last. Being last literally on the grid to this result is kind of surreal. It’s going to take a few days, a few moments to process everything and take it all in.”
Of course, the weather helped facilitate his top-three finish. But, at the same time, Hülkenberg had to take advantage.
There was a moment when he realized it was possible, but, as he noted, in order to achieve greatness, he had to battle the GOAT — seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, now racing for Ferrari. But that battle started with both were able to get around Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. Once that happened, Hülkenberg knew it was game on.
“I think before we pitted back onto slicks, I passed Lance (Stroll), and then Lewis passed Lance pretty quickly and then keep him at bay and then even pull away when the inters started to wear more and more,” Hülkenberg said. “So, that was like, OK — that’s looking pretty positive and encouraging. I think we made a pretty good call by stopping one lap later than he did for the slick, and we gained, I think, around 10 seconds off race time or whatever. That gap was obviously crucial.
“It felt like a pretty long 10, 11, 12 laps — whatever it was. But from there on, I would say, obviously, I knew we’d have every chance to get this result. We just needed to keep it on the road while pushing.”
While finishing third was a huge occasion for the KICK Sauber driver, he has no illusions that it will be all podiums from here. Hülkenberg is well aware that the rainfall and slippery track conditions played a bit of an assist.
At the moment, just happy, relieved. It’s going to sink in more over the next few hours, the next few days
But what he does think is that this can be something of a launching point for his team to start working its way up the midfield with half of the season still remaining.
“Even more, Jesus,” Hülkenberg said. “That’s pretty good starters for today. I think if we had a dry race, I think it would have been a different day and outcome for us. While we’ve made some really good improvements since Barcelona, today was obviously circumstantial, and the conditions made this race and this result possible and happen.
“Yeah, I feel in the midfield fight, we’ve definitely gained some momentum, and we are a serious competitor there. I feel that’s where our fight is. But it’s all about maximizing every race every weekend and trying to do well.”
Hülkenberg has raced for several outfits, from his start at Williams, to his first stint at Sauber, to his tenure with Force India-Racing Point, to his time with Renault and Haas. Now he’s making the most of his time at KICK Sauber, currently ranked ninth in the driver’s championship rankings, paired with a rookie in the Brazilian, Gabriel Bortoleto.
The podium finish harkened back to Hülkenberg’s time at other levels — as a LeMans winner, in GP2 and Formula Three. Still, to achieve third place at the highest level feels quite a bit surreal for the storied veteran.
“It felt good, I still remembered how to do it,” Hulkenberg said. “I used to do it in the junior stuff. I had to wait for it quite a bit, but — like I said earlier, it happened so quick.
“At the moment, just happy, relieved. It’s going to sink in more over the next few hours, the next few days. And I think I’ll feel the enjoyment even more in the week to come.”
It might have been a long wait for Hülkenberg, but once it sinks in, that will certainly make the moment at Silverstone feel that much sweeter.
Up next is the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, which will take place on July 27.
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