Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg has made what seems to be at best a sideways step from Force India to Renault, but he’s confident his transition to a factory team can reap long-term rewards.

- Scott Mitchell

SCOTT MITCHELL This is a big break for you after being at smaller teams. How important is it for your career?

NICO HULKENBERG I think it’s very good that this has come up. It was time for a change, to leave Force India even though we’ve done great stuff together. Eventually you need a change in your life, and this opportunity came at the perfect moment. I’m with a manufacturer, one that has a great history in Formula 1 and has been so successful in previous years and wants to return there. Obviously there’s still a long way to go, but I think it’s great for me to face that challenge with the team, that we work on it together to bring Renault back to the top.

SM There was a joke that even the Pope was offered a drive at Renault, so how wanted did you feel?

NH As soon as we started talking you could tell from both sides that it was wanted. We moved quite fast and in the end the deal was done in quite a short amount of time. That’s a sign that both sides were in favour of it and wanted to make it happen.

SM When Frederic Vasseur’s exit was announced, how disappointed were you? Or had he played his role already getting you into the team?

NH No, I was disappointed. It would have been great to have him on board. He’s a great guy who understands the principles of racing and handles the management side very well. From that point of view the team took a little bit of a hit there. There was some friction or discussions and they couldn’t agree among each other.