Nico Hülkenberg returns to the points with strong pace all weekend | F1 Austin Grand Prix. Nico Hülkenberg bounced back from the Sprint Race incident in Austin.

Nico Hülkenberg of Sauber redeemed himself after the Sprint Race incident, finishing in 8th place. This marks his first top-10 finish of the season since Silverstone, where he achieved his first and only podium in Formula 1.

Sprint ruined

Throughout most of the United States Grand Prix weekend, Nico Hülkenberg was one of the biggest surprises at the Circuit of the Americas, starting with an impressive result in the Sprint qualifying. The German driver managed an unexpected fourth place in the Sprint, but his race ended at the first corner after contact with Oscar Piastri. Nico Hülkenberg received criticism from McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella for the incident.

Back in the top ten

Starting 11th on the grid for the main Texas Grand Prix, the 38-year-old once again showed strong confidence with the Circuit of the Americas. Nico Hülkenberg climbed steadily to finish in 8th place, returning to the points for the first time this season. Reflecting on his performance, he said, “I’m really happy to finish the race in the points – we showed excellent pace throughout the weekend, starting from FP1. With the incident in the Sprint, we didn’t have the chance to demonstrate our true potential, so it was fantastic to have another opportunity. The race was clean, well-executed on multiple fronts, and we were determined to make the most of it. The entire team deserves this result for the work they put in.”

The weekend was more challenging for Nico Hülkenberg’s teammate Gabriel Bortoleto, who started from 16th and finished 18th. “It was a rather quiet race for me. Perhaps we could have done something different with the Virtual Safety Car, but starting from the back always makes things difficult, especially when you don’t have a significant advantage over the cars ahead, as happened today. Overall, it was a challenging weekend. I still want to thank the team for their work during all sessions, listening to my feedback and trying to put me in the best position to perform at my best. We will take the lessons from this weekend, understand what we could have done better, keep our heads up, and move on to the next race,” he said.