Nico Hulkenberg, a German Formula 1 driver for the Haas team, recently revealed that he did not know his teammate, Kevin Magnussen, had intentionally slowed down to help him secure a point during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. When the Safety Car was deployed due to Lance Stroll’s crash on the seventh lap, Haas decided to employ different strategies for their drivers. While Magnussen made a pit stop, Hulkenberg stayed out on track. Magnussen received penalties for colliding with Alex Albon and overtaking Yuki Tsunoda off-track, but still managed to hold onto his position ahead of a group of cars. To increase Hulkenberg’s chances of scoring a point, the team instructed Magnussen to slow down his lap times. As a result, Magnussen was circulating up to two seconds slower than his usual pace, allowing Hulkenberg to build a comfortable lead before making his own pit stop. However, Hulkenberg was not informed of Magnussen’s assistance during the race and believed his own talent was responsible for his success. Reflecting on the race, Hulkenberg expressed his satisfaction at earning a point and praised Magnussen’s defensive driving. He also promised to repay the favor to his teammate in a future race. Haas’s only point in the race elevated the team to sixth place in the championship standings. Hulkenberg acknowledged the strong performance of Oliver Bearman, who was filling in for the ill Carlos Sainz at Ferrari. Despite his efforts to resist Bearman’s overtaking maneuvers, Hulkenberg admitted the Ferrari’s car advantage was too significant for him to maintain his position.
