05/08/2025 12:00
Nico Hulkenberg has explained how he inadvertently "triggered the
alarm" during a "nasty" Hungarian Grand Prix. The Stake driver
started in 18th place in Budapest but performed solidly throughout
the 70-lap race to climb to P13, making up five places to finish
behind the out-of-sorts Lewis Hamilton in the Ferrari. However,
Hulkenberg had received a five-second time penalty from the
stewards for a false start, with his car moving forward just before
the start sequence was initiated. Hulkenberg was puzzled at the
incident, believing that the normal procedure drivers follow when
forming up on the grid could provide answers about the incident.
"It was a strange one, because honestly, I didn't register it,"
Hulkenberg told media, including RacingNews365 , of his penalty
incident. "It must have been when I engaged first gear that I made
a little jump, and then I think that triggered the alarm, so it is
a bit annoying. "The car does a little jump when you put it in
first gear, and I was a little on the late side, so I didn't
register that I had made a jump start." Then, reflecting on his
race at a circuit, he has only scored points twice in 12 races and
not since 2016. Hulkenberg described how the "nasty" race was like
someone had "pulled the plug." "Free air pays, it felt alright, but
as soon as you come behind one car, or in a few cases behind two or
three cars, it is like someone is pulling the plug," the German
explained. "It is pretty nasty with these cars to follow, and it is
much more difficult in the low-speed now than in the high-speed,
which makes it really tough."
