It recently got announced that Hülkenberg is Aston Martin’s reserve and development driver for the 2021 season… However does this put more pressure on Vettel to perform well?
Nico Hülkenberg is very well known with the Silverstone based team, he raced with them between 2012 to 2016. He also stood in for them three times last year when both drivers was off at separate times due to positive Covid tests and then had to quarantine. He can now expect the call to stand in for either of the drivers should either of them miss a race over the course of the season.
It’s well known that Sebastian Vettel hasn’t had the easiest of year in his career, but with him moving to AM you would think things would start looking up as he is at a new team… Unfortunately not he didn’t have very good luck at pre-season testing and in the first race weekend of the season. I do get moving to a new team things are different and it will be tough etc, but if you look at other drivers it hasn’t been that difficult for them to settle into their teams. Has Vettel lost his mojo? Can he get it back if he has?
At the moment Hülkenberg’s role is strictly a reserve one, however that hasn’t stopped people from thinking will he be first in line to replace Vettel or even Stroll?
Everyone knows that Hülkenberg can deliver on a race weekend and he proved that last year when he stood in for the team… I do think Vettel needs to watch himself otherwise he could be out of a seat! Which none of us want but if he doesn’t start performing throughout the weekend then it just may become true and I don’t see him going to another team after this…
Personally, I would like to see Hülkenberg back in F1 permanently whether that be with Aston Martin or with a different team, his got the talent and I think some teams are crazy to not have him as there driver!