Ollie Burke

Yes, Lando Norris won his home Grand Prix, but the real winner on Sunday was Nico Hülkenberg. After thirteen seasons competing in Formula 1 across five different teams, with 239 race starts, Nico Hülkenberg finally secured a podium finish.

On Sunday, July 6th, the ‘classic British summer’ was on full display at Silverstone Circuit in the heart of the Northamptonshire countryside. Heavy showers doused the former airfield, making conditions nearly impossible to drive in. Rookie Isack Hadjar’s onboard footage was a stark reminder of the limited visibility drivers faced, as he slammed into the back of Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes and crashed out of the race in dramatic fashion.

Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg lined up for the British Grand Prix in 19th place after a disappointing qualifying performance on Saturday. Despite the consistent one-lap struggles this season, Hülkenberg’s racecraft and impressive strategy decisions from the Sauber team have seen him score points in his last three races prior to Silverstone.

The race began under a drying track, and Hülkenberg was able to capitalise on several drivers starting from the pit lane to opt for slick tyres. By lap three, the German driver had climbed to tenth place, following a collision between Esteban Ocon and Liam Lawson. Hülkenberg smartly extended his stint on the intermediate tyres when the majority of the field came in a few laps earlier to swap to slicks. On lap nine, Sauber called ‘Hulk’ to ‘Box, box’ for a fresh set of intermediates, and two laps later, torrential rain hit the circuit. The timing of the team’s call was crucial, and Hülkenberg quickly found himself in fifth position.

As the conditions worsened, the race was neutralised behind the safety car, but the mayhem didn’t end there. On the restart, Oscar Piastri slammed hard on his brakes, going from 218km/h to 52km/h with a braking force of 59.2 psi — roughly 30psi more than George Russell in Canada — resulting in a 10-second penalty for the Australian driver. In the cool-down room post-race, Hülkenberg expressed Piastri’s actions had knock-on effects for the rest of the field, highlighting the importance of driver reactions in treacherous conditions.

The restart shenanigans saw Max Verstappen fly past the race leader and was all out of sorts for the following corners, spinning and allowing Hülkenberg to claim yet another place. The chase for third place was now on, as Hülkenberg had Stroll in his sights, and on lap 33, he successfully made the move.

The track dried quickly once again, putting Hülkenberg under threat from Lewis Hamilton, who sought to extend his Silverstone podium streak. The gap between them narrowed with each passing second until it was time for the field to switch to slicks. Sauber’s timing was impeccable once more. “All the stops we made today, they could not have been better,” Hülkenberg said post-race. “We pitted at the perfect time every single time, which is very rare and difficult to do,”. On lap 41, Hamilton swapped to slicks, but a slight wobble on cold tyres in the wet gave Hülkenberg much-needed breathing space.

With nine laps to go, Hülkenberg had to maintain composure and avoid any costly mistakes. Hamilton cut the gap by several seconds, but it wasn’t enough — Hülkenberg had done it. “I don’t think I can comprehend what we’ve just done. Oh my god,” the 37-year-old proclaimed on the radio after the chequered flag.

Nico Hülkenberg’s remarkable performance not only broke the curse and ended one of the most unwanted records in Formula 1, but he also became the first Sauber driver since Kamui Kobayashi in 2012 to secure a podium. Extraordinarily, he’s even managed to gain more points (31) in the last four Grand Prixs than the Red Bull Racing drivers combined (29). And to top it off, he now joins an elite list of drivers who gained 16+ positions and finished on the podium in the ground effect era — Max Verstappen (Brazil 2024), Charles Leclerc (Abu Dhabi 2024) and Nico Hülkenberg (Silverstone 2025). An accomplishment Sonny Hayes would be proud of.

The paddock was thrilled but also stunned by the race result. Sauber themselves needed a helping hand from Mercedes, who kindly gifted them extra bottles of Champagne in a ‘care package’ to celebrate. As Nico stood on the podium, it was oddly fitting that the usual gold and jewel-encrusted trophy was replaced with a Lego trophy this time around. Hülkenberg simply laughed this off in his post-race media interview with the two McLaren drivers, stating that at least his daughter will be able to play with it.

This podium was no fluke — it was a testament to Nico Hülkenberg’s mental fortitude and racecraft experience. Impeccable timed pitstops and sensational strategy were crucial, but it was also the ability to drive in some of the most undriveable conditions you’ll ever see.

Lando Norris was favoured to win his home race with the best car on the grid, which wasn’t necessarily a surprise. However, the real winner of the 2025 British Grand Prix was Hülkenberg. He was the underdog story, a testament to never giving up and trusting that hard work will eventually lead to achieving your dreams. Bravo, Nico Hülkenberg. Bravo.