F1 legend Alain Prost has taken to social media to offer his immediate reaction after Nico Hulkenberg sealed a move to Audi. Hulkenberg is leaving Haas upon the expiry of his contract.
Prost won four world championships between 1985 and 1993 at McLaren and Williams. He worked alongside Hulkenberg as part of his advisory role at the Renault team.
Hulkenberg joined the French manufacturer in 2017 after his second spell with Force India. He would spend three seasons there before they dropped him in favour of Esteban Ocon for 2020.
It looked at that point as if Hulkenberg’s career was effectively over. He made a handful of appearances for Aston Martin in 2020 and 2022 when their main drivers were unavailable, but a full-time return to the grid appeared unlikely.
That was until Haas called him up ahead of the 2023 season, giving him the platform to rebuild his reputation. Audi have been so impressed that they’ve signed him for their F1 project.
He’ll race for Sauber in 2025, his second stint with the team after a single campaign together in 2013, but he’s signed a multi-year contract. That means he’ll be representing Audi when the team completes its takeover in 2026.
Alain Prost reacts as Nico Hulkenberg confirmed at Audi
Hulkenberg released a statement on Instagram following Audi’s announcement, writing: “I am thrilled and honoured to return to Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber in 2025 and to represent the global German car manufacturer and technology pioneer Audi on its way into Formula 1 in the future.
“It‘s a big project with high ambitions and a huge challenge, a challenge that I am very much looking forward to. The conversations with Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffmann were very trustful, characterised by a lot of appreciation and mutual understanding regarding the common goals.
“At the same time I would like to express a special thank you to the entire Haas F1 Team, especially Gene and Guenther, for placing their trust in me 1.5 years ago and making a comeback in F1 possible. I will do everything I can in the remaining 19 races to be as successful as possible.”
In reply, Prost wrote ‘congratulations Nico’, while Christian Klien, who took part in Hulkenberg’s rookie season with three races at HRT also had a message. “Bravo, mega,” he said.
Who will Nico Hulkenberg replace at Sauber?
Hulkenberg’s move to Audi was quickly becoming one of the worst-kept secrets in Formula 1. He’d let out a smile when David Croft asked him about the rumours in the paddock, while reports this week revealed he was about to put pen to paper on a contract.
As such, attention will quickly turn to the repercussions for Sauber. We know for a fact that either Valtteri Bottas or Zhou Guanyu will lose their drive.
As it stands, the more experienced Bottas looks the more likely to keep his seat. But that will likely depend on whether Carlos Sainz, Audi’s preferred candidate, accepts his offer.
If Sainz does arrive, then the Finn may at least have offers elsewhere. Ironically, he could join Haas) if they decide not to take a chance on rookie Oliver Bearman.
Things are looking comparatively bleak for Zhou. The 24-year-old is on the wrong end of a 4-1 deficit in qualifying against Bottas, and 3-2 in the races.
This is his third season in the sport but some would argue that he hasn’t done enough to justify staying in F1. He brings plenty of commercial opportunities through his connections in China, but Audi won’t be as reliant on those funds as Sauber were.
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