Nico Hülkenberg shared his insights into the performance of the C44 and what his expectations are from the upcoming Sauber upgrades after crossing the line in P14 at the F1 Miami GP.
Starting on the hard compound tyres from sixteenth on the grid, Hülkenberg was the last driver to make a pit stop in Miami. As Sauber opted not to pit him under the first Virtual Safety Car, the German dropped down the order when he bolted on the mediums. He finished outside the top ten for the fifth consecutive time since his impressive seventh-place finish in Australia.
Hülkenberg positively surprised by their race pace in Miami
Speaking to F1 TV after the race, Nico Hülkenberg concurred with the statement that the C44 fares better over a single lap than over the entire race distance. Nonetheless, he admitted that the solid pace of the Sauber surprised him on Sunday, especially in comparison to the Alpines and the Aston Martins.
Emphasising that he had to prolong his first stint since he started the race on the alternative strategy, Hülkenberg was nevertheless critical of Sauber’s decision to not pit him under the first Virtual Safety Car during the F1 Miami GP.
Stating that they would review the pit wall’s call that prevented him from making up some lost ground, the 37-year-old, however, admitted that their performance in Miami was moderately satisfactory in terms of overall competitiveness.
“Yeah, more or less. But to be honest it was surprisingly better today. I think we had some decent race pace against the Alpines, against the Astons.
“But I was obviously on a reverse strategy. We were offset to the others, or most others anyways, and didn’t take the first VSC, which I don’t know, we need to review, but it feels like normally you’d take that because it’s a cheap stop. But for some reason I got told not to.
“So yeah, but it felt, it was definitely one of the better ones this year.”
Hülkenberg hopeful about Barcelona upgrades
With regard to how close the competition is for the last points-paying positions and whether an upgrade package would help them finish in the top ten on a more regular basis, Nico Hülkenberg admitted after the F1 Miami GP that they are lacking in performance.
Highlighting the necessity of fine-tuning the balance of the C44, the German driver confirmed that Sauber are intent on introducing an upgrade package in Spain and taking a meaningful step forward on track.
“Yeah, it needs a little more performance, you know, a bit more performance, a bit more harmony and balance in the car.
“The team is pushing for an upgrade in Barcelona, so hopefully that will give us that edge.”
