Max Verstappen shows true colours with gesture at Nico Hulkenberg from his car
Max Verstappen showed his class by immediate congratulating Nico Hulkenberg on his first ever podium in Formula 1. Sauber driver Hulkenberg, 37, had never finished inside the top three after 239 race starts in his long career.
But amid the rain-fuelled chaos of Sunday's British Grand Prix, the German prevailed and took home the trophy for P3. What made Hulkenberg's performance even more remarkable was the fact that he'd started the race at Silverstone in 19th position.
After driving past the chequered flag in front of a raucous British crowd, who were also celebrating Lando Norris' first win at his home circuit, Hulkenberg received a gesture from reigning world champion Verstappen. The Red Bull driver got level with Hulkenberg and was seen giving him a thumbs up before pumping his first.
In a post-race interview with Viaplay, the 37-year-old revealed: "Max was the first guy who came (to congratulate me). We (Max and I) go way back, you know, from karting days when we were teens.
"I think we have a lot of respect... I mean, I have a lot of respect for him, you know - what he does, what he stands for. A great human being."
Verstappen also told reporters about Hulkenberg: "Yeah, fantastic, I'm really happy for him. Yeah, it was very nice to see because when you're in F1 for such a long time and you have not been on the podium, and being so close a few times, I think this is pretty special for him.
"I think for Nico, I think he's quite relaxed in that sense. He knows what he can do. He has shown that in the past, before Formula 1 and in Formula 1, but for whatever reason, it didn't work out up until now.
"He'll take it and he will be very happy, but I think he knows how good he is. The podium does not suddenly say that you are a lot better. It's just really nice for him to at least be on an F1 podium."
Hulkenberg made his F1 debut with Williams in 2010 but a decade later he found himself without a seat. In 2023, Haas offered him the chance to return and he spent two years with the American team.
Ahead of this season, Hulkenberg joined Sauber, who'll become Audi next year. His podium finish also means that Sauber have scored more points than Verstappen's once-dominant Red Bull (35 to 29) in the last four races.
"It's been an emotional rollercoaster this weekend, being virtually last [on Saturday], so a pretty bad day to one of the best days of my career - it's obviously a lot to take in," Hulkenberg added.
"That race was intense, with all the changes of conditions, it was sketchy. A high-speed track with changeable conditions is never easy. While I'm happy and relived, I'm mostly tired, and looking forward to getting home, to be honest."
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Arthur Ashe, who won his historic title here 50 years ago, once remarked that the gap between the world No 1 and No 10 was as great as that between ten and 100. You did not need expert eyes to see that Norrie's current ranking — No 61, though this run will lift it — was cruelly exposed. "I was the underdog and he just took care of things really well," said Norrie. "It was a good experience to play the best player in the world, on his favourite surface. I didn't take my chances and that showed in the score. "When he's enjoying his tennis like this and he's serving that well, he's the favourite to win again for sure and the level he is playing is unreal. He's got so many options - he's got power and then he plays a drop shot. His physicality and movement makes it very tough for you. "It was one of the biggest matches of my career but for him that was probably just another match. He just played much better than me in the big moments and it all seemed to happen very quickly. 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This time I went into the match much more calm and relaxed. "I've just been really proud of how I've been mentally all week. I was about as close to being out of the tournament in the first round as you can be. "I think grass can be an equaliser. I trust how I'm playing. I truly believe that, playing the way I did in the first two sets today, there is not much any opponent can do."
