Nico Hülkenberg recovered from a poor qualifying session on Saturday to finish eighth at the Monaco Grand Prix, a welcome return to the points after two consecutive retirements.
The Renault Sport Formula One Team driver started from eleventh on the grid and was able to run a different strategy to the cars ahead of him to aid his recovery, starting on the Ultrasoft Pirelli tyre before switching to the Hypersoft on lap fifty, with the German the last driver to make his first pit stop in the race.
“It’s a positive feeling today,” said Hülkenberg. “I had the possibility of running a different strategy to Carlos [Sainz Jr.] and it worked well.
“It was a good recovery from a not so successful qualifying yesterday and I think eighth was the best we could do in the situation.”
The German had to be patient at the Circuit de Monaco as he waited for the drivers in front of him to pit before he could make best use of his Ultrasoft tyres.
“My first stint was very successful,” he said. “It was very difficult in the middle as I had a lot of graining, but the tyre recovered and I could do some very quick laps and it brought the race back to me.”
Some drivers complained the race was not the most exciting and Hülkenberg admits some races can be like this but was pleased to take advantage and score points.
“That’s the thing with Monaco; it can be crazy or it can be like today, but we made the most of the opportunities,” he insisted.
