The Formula 1 driver’s market looks very open towards the back of the grid and one man who might benefit from Audi’s introduction to the sport in 2026 is Nico Hulkenberg.
The 36-year-old German has reportedly already been offered a contract by Audi to start driving for them next year.
Speaking at the pre-race press conference ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, Nico Hulkenberg addressed what’s going on behind the scenes in the paddock right now.
Going into 2024, more than half of the grid was aware that they were entering the final year of their current deals.
Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari threw a cat amongst the pigeons and has left Carlos Sainz as a free agent, giving teams an additional option that they didn’t expect to have.
The Spaniard has been one of the standout drivers this season and is driving like a man hoping to secure the best seat possible for 2025.
RB driver Yuki Tsunoda is in a similar boat, while Hulkenberg scoring back-to-back points for Haas deserves a lot of credit.
Audi want to sign Hulkenberg as it means they’ll enter the sport being represented by a German driver, but the F1 driver’s market is a volatile beast.
Until he puts pen to paper, anything can happen and each performance on track could sway team principal Andreas Seidl into making a different decision.
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Nico Hulkenberg addresses Formula 1 driver’s market amid Audi links
Current Sauber drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are fighting for their places in the team right now.
Bottas has admitted staying with Audi is his number-one priority for 2025 even though they wanted to get rid of him at the end of last season.
Heading into his home Grand Prix, Zhou is also aiming to sign a new contract with Sauber.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear as though either driver is Audi’s first choice.
They’re desperate to sign Carlos Sainz and he would be a fantastic addition to the team.
He’s proven he’s good enough to fight with both Red Bull cars this season and if he took a step down to join Sauber in 2025, then it would be a huge sign of their ambition.
The driver’s market could also see Hulkenberg make the switch to Audi from Haas despite the American team sitting above them in the Constructors’ Championship.
The 36-year-old admits that plenty could change very quickly in the coming weeks.
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Nico Hulkenberg discusses ‘dynamic’ F1 grid changes for 2025
Asked if he expects more movement in the driver’s market now that Fernando Alonso has committed his future to Aston Martin, Hulkenberg said: “Not sure, not necessarily.
“It’s always difficult to foresee that and to predict. For some, it might move quite quickly, for some maybe not.
“But, it’s definitely an interesting situation right now, the driver market is very dynamic, very fluid and I’m sure all the drivers with no contract for 2025 are pretty busy right now, having lots of conversations, checking options and trying to obviously fix the future, the same for me.”
Hulkenberg has been part of the Formula 1 paddock for a long time now but still has plenty to achieve.
He’ll be desperate to end his long wait for a maiden F1 podium and joining the newest works team on the grid gives him a much better chance than if he stays at Haas.
The F1 driver’s market is unpredictable and Audi are also keen on Esteban Ocon which could be bad news for Hulkenberg.
However, if an offer from Audi is withdrawn, he’ll be in a strong position to stay at Haas over Kevin Magnussen with the team looking to bring Oliver Bearman in for the start of 2025.
The post ‘Might move quite quickly’: Nico Hulkenberg responds to 2024 F1 driver’s market amid Audi links appeared first on F1 Oversteer.