Q&A with Nico Hulkenberg - A very strong team performance

"From a team perspective we can be happy"

By Franck Drui

29 May 2012 - 18:38
Q&A with Nico Hulkenberg - A (...)

The Monaco Grand Prix proved to be a successful one for Sahara Force India as Paul Di Resta and Nico Hülkenberg brought home some valuable points by finishing seventh and eighth, just a second apart. Their different strategies saw them trade positions as Paul’s later stop – a result of starting on the soft rather than supersoft tyres – ultimately gave him an advantage. Encouragingly Nico set the second fastest lap in the field, one that was quicker than the best lap any of the podium finishers. We asked him about his race.

Nico, you got some solid points in Monaco with eighth place, just behind Paul. Are you pleased with the way it worked out?

“I think from a team perspective we can be happy because we picked up a few points, which is good. I would rather have finished seventh, but it was the classic example in Monaco of stopping a bit earlier and then running into traffic with Kimi. Paul got just the edge there with a free track and came out in front. But all in all it was a very strong team performance.”

How did things go at the start – did you see the accident ahead?

“It was pretty messy! I was on the inside so I didn’t see what happened exactly, I just suddenly saw a Lotus square in front of me. The only way to avoid it was to go on the inside because it was blocked with cars on the left. Luckily I got through there without any contact. I was ninth after the first lap so I gained a place”

Paul’s strategy worked out better – any regrets about your choice?

“I was starting on the supersoft and he was on the soft so it was always clear that he was going a bit longer. Mine would have worked better, but obviously with the traffic things didn’t come together.”

Were you happy with the car?

“The car was good: it performed well. I think we showed some good speed there, I did a 1m18.4s after the stop when I had a clear lap.”

Any thoughts on the next race in Montreal?

“It’s a good circuit and I enjoy visiting Canada. I did Friday last year and in 2010 with Williams my pace was good. I enjoy driving there so I’m looking forward to it. But I have no idea how competitive we will be!"

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