Nico Hülkenberg gears up for an enduring Singapore Grand Prix that is staged this weekend for the fifteenth race of the 2019 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.
The German goes into the round on the back of two solid points-finishes in Spa and Monza, underlining why the Renault F1 Team driver earns his right to keep his place on the grid.
Racing under the lights is what Hülkenberg describes as “unique”, as he hopes to put on as good of a show as did in the previous two rounds.
“Singapore is the only real night race on the calendar, so that makes it really unique,” Hülkenberg said.
“It does take a bit of extra time to get used to racing under artificial lights but we’re quite adept to it now. We stay on European time there, so that means waking up at lunchtime and then we have the rest of the day and night ahead. We don’t see too much day light!”
The thirty-two year old’s best result in Singapore has been ninth in 2013 and 2014 but has failed to finish in three of the last four events on this street track. Hülkenberg expects to see a lot of tired drivers at the end of this weekend’s race.
“It’s probably the most physical race of the season. A lap is very busy at the wheel, extremely physical and tiring,” Hülkenberg added.
“It’s a long circuit with corners coming thick and fast without many straights to have a rest. The humidity makes it very tricky and that, combined with all the gear shifts and changes of direction, makes it exhausting come the end of the race.”
The aim for the Renault pilot is to close the gap on rivals McLaren F1 Team in the battle for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. He believes it is “certainly possible” for that to happen in Singapore.
“The team left Italy on a real high,” the German said positively.
“The whole weekend was a super effort from everyone, starting with a solid qualifying result and then a strong race to move up a position. We’ve made a big swing in the Constructors’ Championship and the race for fourth is on.
“We have to develop this now and aim to pick up these kinds of results more regularly. It’s certainly possible and we won’t be letting up.”
