Jonathan Wheatley hails the drive by Nico Hulkenberg to secure his first F1 podium, as he notes of progress by Sauber and how the grand prix panned out.
Not only it was Hulkenberg’s first F1 podium in British GP, it was also Sauber’s first under the new regime ahead of Audi move. It came at a time when the team has struggled to score and has been at the fag end of the championship standings for several seasons.
Having taken over as the team principal, Wheatley has enjoyed some success in the last few races and the podium only adds to his tally and also of Mattia Binotto’s. The former Red Bull man was dissected how the strategy came about for the German and how they were calm about their decisions.
It was crucial to stop at the right moment which allowed him to gain places to move inside the Top 5 after starting last. Once there, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen’s spin made his job easier as he only had to clear Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and keep Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton behind.
Once he cleared Stroll, he had Hamilton close but a timely pit stop allowed him to maintain the gap which was further helped by Hamilton’s wide moment. Wheatley noted about the team being calm and brushed off a slow stop, stating that it was nervous moments for the crew indeed.
There was full praise for Hulkenberg’s work as well, who has chipped in nicely to the team’s success this year. In terms of Sauber’s upward move, Wheatley pinned it on the Barcelona update, which helped the drivers to drive with larger confidence, since the car became more consistent and predictable.
Reaction, result –
Wheatley: “He was almost in a state of shock when I saw him under the podium and chatted to him, but how do I sum it up? I’m just trying to stay in the moment and enjoy it rather than this relentless sort of merry-go-round that we’re on to the next race and next race. Nico drove an outstanding race, one of the best I’ve seen at Silverstone and one of the best I’ve seen of any driver ever. And it seems incredible to me that we’re all celebrating a podium as it feels to me like he should have been getting them all his career. It seems to be the longest-waited podium ever. He showed his class, didn’t put a wheel wrong and the team made all the right decisions in terms of strategy.
“Stayed out when we needed to stay out and then switched to the medium at the right time. I’m just very, very proud of him. I’ve talked about how important momentum is in a team and so really for me what I take from Silverstone is for people to start believing in us. I can say the words, I can say we’re gaining momentum, I can say we’re putting performance on the tower, I can say that Mattia and all the hard work he’s been putting in before I came here is coming to light but it’s true. We’ve got a very long journey towards where we need to be as a team and it’s a great step when you start on that journey.”
Strategy –
Wheatley: “We had an eye on the weather that was coming, which I think is what everyone did. I think Nico just felt like his intermediates had just had it and he thought the same. We boxed him at that point. It was absolutely the right decision. The other significant decision, given Lewis’s pace, was the time that we boxed onto the medium tyre after that. We waited, we kept our power to drive, we weren’t the first to go, we were watching very carefully what the other drivers did and I think we got the timing right on that. We were talking to Nico about the right tyre and really honestly we were thinking whether it was the hard or the medium to go for. We weren’t really considering the soft unless it was a bit later in the race.
“I think that was why, as I said, it was very important to get onto the dry tyre at the right time and not a bit too soon. Lewis put us under pressure by boxing first but we were just having a nice calm conversation about what the right time to do it was and I think that one lap made a difference. Honestly, some of us wanted to stay on another lap [ahead of the final stop] because I think the feeling on the pit wall was it was too soon and that’s why I’m so proud of the team today. The strategists, the race engineers, Gabriel’s race engineer was working with the team as well. It’s not like he just folded his laptop down and went away. He was offering valuable advice and this team spirit here is building and building and getting stronger and stronger.”
Pit stop, clearing rivals –
Wheatley: “I don’t know. I think if it had been a dry race, perhaps I wouldn’t have so many of you stood around me right now. We faced our challenges with C45 and this really didn’t feel like a circuit that would suit us. I think cometh the hour, cometh the man and Nico drove an incredible race. I think he had a racing car underneath him. A for pit stop, I think honestly there were a little bit of nerves in the pit crew. I don’t want to take away from the fact we’re still a young team, we’re getting to know each other, there’s more confidence.
“I’ve been on this journey before, and it takes a little while for everyone to feel fully confident. I was very calm on the pit wall. I thought Nico had just bide his time. I’m sure you saw he was trying some different lines. I think it’s still very difficult to follow very closely to other cars and he was close to him in places where he was struggling to keep close in terms of the other car being in front of him. And then he just lightened it up beautifully with some DRS.”
Hulkenberg’s heroics –
Wheatley: “I can’t speak for any one of them myself. I’ve considered him to be an extraordinary talent for a very long time and I think I’ve been consistent in saying that to everyone here. It seemed incredible to me that he’s never achieved a podium in his career. I think he showed today what he’s capable of and I think also for him it’s a milestone. The monkey’s off his back. I was hugely excited about the opportunity to work with Nico. I’ve known him for a really long time. Drivers’ briefings, chatting in the paddock. I think we had a couple of beers in the BRDC one year as well. He’s an outstanding driver and he just showed it.”
Team step –
Wheatley: “I think we’ve all seen a confidence in both drivers with the car since Barcelona. I think that’s it. It was very peaky before. You probably noticed it was difficult for the drivers to consistently improve in qualifying, which was one of our big problems. I can remember in Jeddah even on the brakes into Turn 1 both drivers had problems getting that right. Now we don’t even talk about it.”
Here’s Sauber undertaking Pirelli tyre test
Here’s Nico Hulkenberg on F1 podium
