Silverstone: Nico Hülkenberg achieved his first podium in F1

The 37 -year -old German had to expect 239 major awards to be able to wear a World Cup trophy. In a road, he started 19th and ended third.

The Podium of the GP of Great Britain 2025 gathered Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri and Nico Hülkenberg. As? Stop Who? Yes, Nico Hülkenberg. Finally, one day the first podium arrived in Formula 1 for the German, for which he had to wait 239 races! With 37 years He managed to participate in the awards ceremony in a career in the highest category of motor racing. As data, When Nico debuted there in the distant BARÉIN GP of 2010, Piastri was 9 years old and Norris, 10.

Hülkenberg, a pilot much appreciated by his colleagues in the paddock, ran all 2010 with Williams. In 2011 he held the reserve place of Force India, a team in which he started from 2012 to 2016. In 2015 he was pleased to win the 24 hours of Le Mans sharing a Porsche with Earl Bamber and Nick Tandy. After passing through the Indian team, he moved to Renault (2017, 2018 and 2019). At the end of his contract with the rhombus, he ran out of chair. However, the Covid-19 pandemic gave him the chance to run two races in Racing Point (replacing Czech Pérez and Lance Stroll, the headlines that had been infected). In 2022, the Coronavirus gave him more chances: he replaced Sebastian Vettel in Baréin and Saudi Arabia. In 2023 he returned full time in Haas and for this year he was recruited as a mascarón de Proa for the official Audi landing, which will arrive in 2026, running in the last season under the name of Sauber.

Hinwil’s team was comfortably last at the 2024 World Cup, with just four points. Everything seemed to indicate that this season the story would be repeated, because the gaze is set on the arrival of the Ingolstadt brand. However, and to the surprise of many, Sauber decided to work hard on the updates of the C45, which arrived in Barcelona. From there, the car hit a huge leap and the team arrived in Silverstone with 20 points added in three races (Spain, Canada and Austria). The best was reserved for Great Britain.

After a complicated classification, everything seemed uphill. Gabriel Bortoleto (first scored in Spielberg) and Nico Hülkenberg had stayed outside in Q1. The Brazilian lasted little: in the third round he made a mistake, lost control on the wet track and left. The German continued.

With his 37 years old in his bag, pure experience, Nico Hülkenberg was never wrong. Not a mistake, nothing. The team, with the baton of Mattia Binotto (ex-Ferrari) and Jonathan Wheatley (with a past in Red Bull), the team significantly managed the race. In the final turns, Nico marched third, but there was nothing less than Lewis Hamilton, the most angry pilot in Silverstone. But he endured everything and got his first podium.

“It took a long time to arrive. I always knew that we have it inside, I have it inside me. What a race, coming from practically the last position, repeating the last weekend; it is quite surreal, the truth. I am not sure of how everything happened, but obviously the conditions were crazy, mixed conditions. It was a fight for survival during much of the race. I think we were in the right point: The appropriate time, we did not make mistakes and yes, it was incredible.Said Hülkenberg.

After the podium and the press conference, the party broke out at the Paddock in Sauber. With a particularity: they had no champagne prepared to celebrate. It is that, although the team came along a good path, no one imagined that the afternoon would close with a celebration. Luckily from Mercedes came the donation of foaming drinks and there yes, total party.