Force India reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg says 2012 race seat important for his career – Formula 1
Force India reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg has said that a 2012 Formula 1 race seat is very important for his career in the sport.
Hulkenberg was the driver of the team Williams in the 2010 Formula 1 season. He made his solid debut in F1 racing with the team last year. At the end of the season, he showed his interest towards the Force India team. However, the India-based team confirmed
him as a test driver for the 2011 Formula 1 season.
The German is driving for the Force India team during the Friday Free Practice sessions from the start of the ongoing 2011 season. He admitted that although test-driving is not doing a lot for his career, but it is better than nothing at the moment.
He told the media that he could not take a decision to leave a race seat at the end of the last season. In addition, he said that he could have stayed with Williams for a long time and experienced the different aspects of the sport.
Talking to the reporters, Hulkenberg said, “The timing of the decision was not perfect, because all of the other seats were already taken. The test driving is not much and it's frustrating, but it's better than nothing. Luckily I can at least drive on Fridays.”
The 23-year-old driver insisted, “This one season is not fatal to my career, but next year I have to have a race seat. Otherwise it's difficult for me.”
Williams selected the Venezuelan driver, Pastor Maldonado in place of Hulkenberg for the 2011 Formula 1 season. He took a below par start in the ongoing season, as he failed to perform well for the team in the initial races.
The 26-year-old driver is still unable to make improvements in terms of performance in the season. In the recently held British Grand Prix, Maldonado gave a better performance during the qualifying round. He started his race from the 7th place
on the grid and ended up at the 14th place for the team.
After the Silverstone race weekend, Williams are expecting for some decent results from Maldonado in the upcoming German Grand Prix. Let’s see how he performs in Nürburgring this weekend.
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