Jonathan Wheatley addresses Nico Hulkenberg consistency concerns

Since claiming a breakthrough podium at the British Grand Prix, it has been tougher going for Nico Hulkenberg.

That Silverstone result marks the last time the German veteran has finished in the points, prompting suggestions he’s entered a form slump.

Jonathan Wheatley insists Nico Hulkenberg’s form dip is ‘just a transient thing’

Hulkenberg finished just 16th in Azerbaijan, five places behind his rookie Sauber teammate, Gabriel Bortoleto.

The 38-year-old failed to take the start in Italy after a hydraulic issue ended his race before it had begun, while he’d finished no better than 12th in the three races immediately prior.

In that same five-race period, Bortoleto has recorded three top-10 results for a total of 14 points.

“It’s a question I’m being asked more and more often now,” Sauber team boss, Jonathan Wheatley, said of Hulkenberg’s form.

“I personally don’t feel there’s any fundamental issue here.

“Nico is a tremendously experienced and fast racing driver. And many, many times he’s been outqualified by a thousandth, or hundredth. Do you know what I mean? It’s not always like a big thing.”

Instead, Wheatley suggests Hulkenberg’s fluctuating fortunes is a reflection of the competitive midfield battle.

Sauber sits eighth in the Constructors’ Championship with 55 points, just seven shy of Aston Martin, which is in turn only 10 in arrears of Racing Bulls in sixth.

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By contrast, Haas is only 11 points back in ninth, while Alpine has shown the ability to steal solid points on occasion, too.

Maximising the potential on any given weekend can therefore be a significant differentiator.

“We spent a lot of time talking about Nico had never been on the podium, and we’ve done that now, and I honestly think it’s just a transient thing,” Wheatley said of the recent downturn.

“Gabrielle’s fast as well, and if one of them gets a lap right, one of them is going to out-qualify the other. And I think Gabrielle certainly been a run of circuits where he’s more familiar with and with Nico, I don’t think there’s anything big to get over. He’ll just string it together.

“He had a great run in [final practice in Baku], we had every confidence going in, but then that bump into the wall meant that he didn’t have a baseline for his next run.

“That’s the trouble, if you want to progress through qualifying at the moment, you need to get Run 1 right, in the bank, and then you can start chipping away at your lap time.”

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