As a contrast to yesterday’s wet Qualifying session, the Hungaroring basked in searing sun for the Grand Prix, bringing tyre management considerations to the fore. Both Renault drivers made strong starts, but it proved hard work moving up the order thereafter.
Hülkenberg was P10 at the end of the first lap, but finished in twelfth position, pushing hard after a late stop to change to the Ultrasoft tyres.
“We didn’t have the pace in the car today, and the balance felt poor," Nico Hülkenberg explained.
"Ultimately, we weren’t fast enough. We had a good one last weekend and it wasn’t so good this weekend, but that’s racing. When you don’t have the pace, everything gets difficult and I was in traffic most of the time, which makes things hard. We thought this track layout would suit us, so we need to understand what’s gone on this weekend and why the car was difficult to drive. We look forward, though, testing this week before a bit of time off. The team, the engineers and the mechanics deserve the break.”
His team mate Carlos Sainz finished in the points, but wasn’t able to fully capitalise on his fine fifth position on the grid.
“It was a frustrating race," says Sainz.
"It was a tough first lap with the Soft, but I got off the line well until I was pushed out at turn one and lost some positions. As the race settled, I started to pick up the pace and put in some fast laps when we boxed. Traffic then didn’t help and it cost us time against both McLarens, who came out in front after their first stop. We need to see what happened there but for sure we could have done things better today.”
Despite the challenges of today, the team remains in fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship heading into the summer break.
