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‘I don’t care if it’s a Red Bull’ – Hulkenberg reflects on defensive Singapore drive as he bags more Haas points
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Nico Hulkenberg explained that securing points is his main priority no matter which cars are around him, after he added two more to Haas’s 2024 tally in the tight midfield battle.
The German narrowly missed out on finishing in the top 10 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as his temporary team mate Ollie Bearman took the final point of the race.
But he made amends for it in Singapore, crossing the line in ninth after initially getting past Oscar Piastri in the opening stages. Whilst the quicker McLaren got back past, Hulkenberg did well to keep Fernando Alonso at bay until the Aston Martin got the better of him in the pit stops.
As the physically demanding race neared its close, he was forced to relentlessly defend from the threat of Sergio Perez’s Red Bull to secure some incredibly valuable points for the team.
Hulkenberg had a great start to the race but lost out in the pits
“Obviously happy to get points, that’s what matters,” he said after the race. “From that point of view, it was good. There’s a few things to look into and review in terms of strategy but otherwise, clean race.
“[It was] not very eventful, but stressful keeping the Red Bull at bay for the whole second stint. It was tough to bring it home with the tyres and everything but we managed, so happy and a bit of a redemption from last week.”
From finishing at the bottom of the constructors’ standings in 2023 to fighting against a reigning constructors’ champion car, Haas have taken some remarkable steps forward over this season.
Hulkenberg went on to explain that, in general, they have been “there or thereabouts many times” over the year, which has got them into their championship battle with RB – Haas are now just three points adrift of Red Bull’s sister team with six races to go.
Reflecting on Singapore, the 37-year-old said: “We pulled it off, put ourselves in a really good position already yesterday with quali. I had a good start and a clean race. I don’t care if it’s a Red Bull or who it is, it’s important that we get those points.”
Magnussen last scored points in Monza when he crossed the line in P10
His team mate Kevin Magnussen returned to the paddock after serving his one-race ban for accumulating the maximum 12 penalty points, but was left downbeat after retiring from the race with an unfortunate puncture.
He grazed the wall, as did many drivers throughout the race, but he explained that “sometimes you hit a rough spot and it cuts the tyre” which forced him to end his race late on.
Magnussen added: “We tried to do the opposite strategy, go long, hope for a safety car in that middle window and that didn’t happen. Of course we had to cut it short because we were just too slow on the hards, and then I had the puncture.
“We’ve had good pace in recent races. We’re in a good spot with the car. I think we have an upgrade coming for the next race and there’s every race to look forward to for the rest of the season.”
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