Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg will not be making Indycar move despite successful McLaren test

Kevin Peterson03 mins

Former Formula 1 driver Nico Hulkenberg has killed off his own prospects of racing in the NTT IndyCar Series in the future, for “personal reasons”. The 34-year-old German driver, who remains Aston Martin F1’s reserve driver but who no longer entertains any hopes of returning full-time to the grid, was offered a test outing by Arrow McLaren SP two weeks ago at Barber Motorsports Park. Hulkenberg qualified the run in Alabama as “good and successful” while McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown readily put the former Grand Prix driver among the front-runners to fill a third seat in the future at AMSP. However, despite the positive feedback that followed his Barber test, Hulkenberg ruled out a move to IndyCar in a message on Twitter on Thursday. “Quick update regarding IndyCar: It was exciting to test an Indycar two weeks ago and I am grateful to Arrow McLaren SP for this opportunity,” Hulkenberg wrote. “However for personal reasons I decided not to go ahead with it. Keep you posted on my future plans.” The former Renault driver didn’t elaborate on the “personal reasons” behind his decision. But as the proud parents of a recently born young son, Hulkenberg and his wife, fashion designer Egle Ruskyte, may feel that committing to IndyCar or relocating to America are not in the family’s best interests. Hulkenberg’s former F1 colleagues, Marcus Ericsson and Romain Grosjean have both successfully undergone the endeavour. Ericsson switched to IndyCar in 2019 and has enjoyed two wins in the series, while Grosjean is in the process of moving his family to the US where he will undertake in 2022 his first full IndyCar season, running with top outfit Andretti Autosport.

Hulkenberg criticises some F1 teams for having ‘questionable taste’ for drivers

Kevin Peterson04 mins

Nico Hulkenberg has admitted that he may now never return to Formula 1 and has gone on to say that the ‘questionable choices’ of drivers for some teams have left him without a seat in recent years. Hulkenberg was one of the most promising drivers during his time on the grid and the feeling was if he had been given a quick enough car, he could have delivered podiums and race victories. He largely never had the chance to do that, though, and so it’s apparent it will go down as an opportunity missed – though he accepts that sometimes that is Formula 1. Reflecting on his time in the sport, ahead of a likely switch to IndyCar for next season, the German said that it is probably going to be the case he doesn’t return to F1 now and that is fine, but some teams perhaps make decisions on drivers based on financials more than talent alone. “Yeah, definitely. I’ve got to be realistic there, that this train probably has left, especially given today’s current situation,” he told motorsport.com. “It is what it is. Obviously, as a driver, you’re part of the process of the decision, but the teams ultimately take the decisions and some teams have some questionable taste or decision-making! “And yeah, it’s a bit of an interesting situation in F1 in general at the moment. I feel like the top 10 drivers, maybe 12, they are really high quality and real top-notch drivers. And then the bottom half, the quality is not as high as it used to be. And there is a lot of other factors in there. “So obviously, from my point of view it’s a little sad and disappointing to see that, but that’s just the way it is.” It’s been an age-old problem for Formula 1 where the finances and sponsors a driver can bring to a team sometimes outweigh the ultimate talent they’ve got. Certainly, you’d feel as though Hulkenberg still has a lot to give in an F1 field but it appears his time in the sport has come to an end now, and he’ll be eager to get as much as he can out of what comes next.