Nico Hülkenberg said that whilst the safety car period worked well for the Renault Sport Formula One Team, he thinks the team would still have “come out on top” without it at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Hülkenberg qualified in seventh and went on to finish sixth, being the first driver of the midfield teams across the line. Whilst this midfield battle – which McLaren F1 Team currently lead – is quickly turning into a fight between McLaren and Renault, the German believes Renault would have emerged on top even without the safety car period.
“Everyone seemed to have low grip at the start with cars sliding all over the place. We were on a two-stop strategy from the beginning, so we had to make the tyre last, while maintaining strong pace.
“It paid off well, the safety car played to our hands and made things easier, but even without the safety car I think we would have come out on top.
“The pace was good today and we were on top of the midfield, so not a bad day overall. Eight points, we’ll take that home. It was an entertaining one, that’s for sure!”
Hülkenberg now sits in seventh place in the Driver’s Championship, equal on points with McLaren’s Fernando Alonso (though behind Alonso as the Spaniard’s best finish of a fifth place is higher than Hülkenberg’s sixth).
