The insane dominance shown by Red Bull during the 2023 season so far has led to fans, including Matt and Tommy at P1, wondering what could have been if Red Bull weren’t part of the season at all. While going through the updated race results, they made an amazing discovery about how Nico Hulkenberg could have had the day of his life, only for it to be snatched away right after.
Despite making his debut all the way back in 2010, Hulkenberg is yet to stand on an F1 podium. Even though the German has managed to finish P4 on three different occasions throughout his 13-year-long career in F1, he has never managed to make it into the top three.
His latest close call with the podium came in Silverstone in 2020 when he stood in for Sergio Perez at Racing Point. He was running 4th during the race but fell down the order when he had to pit at the end of the race due to high tire wear. Turns out, if Red Bull weren’t there in the 2023 season, Hulkenberg would have missed out on a probable podium place in the most heartbreaking way possible.
Even Verstappen’s absence couldn’t have broken the infamous Nico Hulkenberg streak
Matt and Tommy of WTF1 fame came up with a video about how crazy the 2023 season would have been without Red Bull on their new YouTube channel. In the video, they found out that without Verstappen on the grid, Nico Hulkenberg would have had a podium finish snatched away from him at the end of the race at the Australian GP.
The Australian GP was highly chaotic this year with three red flags and two restarts. The second start resulted in yet another stoppage. After this, Hulkenberg would have been running P3, if Verstappen wasn’t on the track. Unfortunately, the final restart wasn’t counted.
However, he would have lost his podium either way, since the FIA decided that the final race result would be in the order in which the cars started, following the previous red-flag stoppage.
Therefore, even without Verstappen, Hulkenberg would have only finished P6 despite seeing the light of the podium for a few minutes. Hulkenberg would not have been able to break his record of having the most number of Grand Prix starts without a podium either way. His current record stands at 193 race starts.
Hulkenberg’s future prospects
It is likely that Hulkenberg’s potential tragedy would have been mourned by Verstappen too, who has turned out to be a good friend of his. During the latest F1 Nation podcast, journalist Eric Van Haren revealed that Hulkenberg and Verstappen are good friends. Hulkenberg even visited the Red Bull hospitality to meet up with Verstappen earlier this season.
The Dutch journalist also hinted a possibility of the two racers teaming up for the 24 hours of Le Mans. Verstappen has shown prior interest in participating in the endurance race, and has spoken about leaving F1 on several occasions.
As for Hulkenberg, he’s performing considerably well in the current season with Haas. He has conjured up nine points and is currently P14, four places higher than his teammate Kevin Magnussen who has a mere two points. Considering his form, Haas would definitely want to keep him with them in 2024.
