Nico Hulkenberg failed to convert an opportunity into points at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, finishing 11th after running as high as 10th in the closing stages. The German driver expressed his frustration as Audi—making its Formula 1 debut this season—once again had to settle for being on the cusp of the points.
“For a while the points seemed within reach, so it's a shame we missed out. Towards the end I was tenth, but the cars ahead started battling each other; that cost us time and allowed Carlos to take advantage of my slipstream. The Williams was very fast on the straights and I couldn't do much to hold him off,” said Hulkenberg.
He added that top speed was the team's main weakness throughout the weekend. “It was a bit the story of our weekend: we lacked top speed and at this track it's difficult both to gain positions and to defend. We take the hit and look forward. Now we have a few days to analyse the data, better understand the package and figure out what we can achieve next weekend,” he explained.
The result in Baku also saw Audi lose ground to Haas in the constructors' standings, as the American team scored its first double points finish of the season. Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz of Williams overtook Hulkenberg to secure a better position.
Hulkenberg's teammate, Gabriel Bortoleto, had to settle for 15th. Nevertheless, the Brazilian driver saw positives from the race. “It wasn't the easiest weekend, but the race itself was quite promising in terms of pace. The new package gave good feedback, especially in the middle sector, where the car was quite competitive. We had good rhythm when we were behind other cars; that was encouraging after the difficulties on Thursday and Friday. The feeling was different on the straights, where we lacked pace. However, despite still being outside the points, I'm happy with the moderate progress today: positives we can take to the next race,” said Bortoleto.
With this result, Audi still has work to do to improve performance, especially in terms of top speed which is key at circuits like Baku. The team will analyse the data before the next race to find solutions.
Baca Juga
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