Nico Hulkenberg starts over with Audi, Rosberg takes a jab: “Early in his career, he burned some bridges”. Nico Hulkenberg will begin a new adventure this year with Sauber, the future Audi team. .

A return to the past, looking to the future
The year 2025 will mark the start of a new chapter in Nico Hulkenberg’s career. The Emmerich native, one of the grid’s veterans, is coming off a more-than-positive season with Haas and will this year return to wear the Sauber team suit, a team he already raced for in 2013. However, the distinctive feature of this move is that the Swiss team will become Audi’s official team in 2026, with Nico Hulkenberg likely to serve as a cornerstone for the Four Rings’ debut in Formula 1.

‘Hulk,’ once considered the greatest talent of his generation in the junior formulas, also boasts a victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in his career. However, in F1, he has never cemented his reputation, nor has he ever secured a podium finish. His name has often been linked with major teams, but a move to a top-tier outfit has never materialized. According to his compatriot, namesake, and former colleague Nico Rosberg, Nico Hulkenberg has no one but himself to blame for this, rather than bad luck.

Nico Rosberg’s jab
“It’s incredible that Nico Hulkenberg has never stepped on the podium,” the 2016 world champion said to Sky Sports F1. “He was the greatest talent in Formula 3 and Formula 2 and showed flashes of absolute brilliance in Formula 1. But, somehow, he never lived up to expectations—except this year, when he really stood out, optimizing the car at all times. In qualifying, you could say he was one of the best on the entire grid this year; it was incredible to watch.”

However, over the years, Nico Hulkenberg’s progress was reportedly hampered by certain character issues and missteps during crucial seasons.

“If you prove to be one of the best, sooner or later, you get the lucky car,” Rosberg emphasized, “and he never fully proved it. Moreover, he wasn’t the best socially, in terms of social intelligence, in doing the work you need to do with team principals to get the right position. He burned some bridges early in his career, and that was something he could have managed better. At times, he also went through phases where he wasn’t good enough: Daniel Ricciardo, for example, beat him at Renault. And look where Daniel Ricciardo is now. It turned out even Ricciardo wasn’t the best.”