Nico Hulkenberg - China Q&A

Nico Hulkenberg scored his first points of the 2012 season in Malaysia and was delighted to finally get some race mileage.

German looking for more points in Shanghai

Nico Hulkenberg scored his first points of the 2012 season in Malaysia and was delighted to finally get some race mileage. The German retired from the Australian Grand Prix in the opening stages after damaging his Force India at the first corner. Despite challenging conditions in Sepang, the young German was able to bring the car home in ninth spot and secure two valuable points for the team in their tight midfield battle. Q: Nico, after the disappointment of Melbourne, you finally got some racing miles under your belt in Sepang...
Nico Hulkenberg: "Yes, I'm happy with the race we had in Malaysia, which was basically the first proper race I have done since the end of 2010. It wasn't an easy race and I was never in any clean air, but it was good to pick up a couple of points - my first points for the team." Q: Did you learn much about the car given that the conditions were so changeable in Sepang?
NH: "You always learn something and a race distance is always valuable for your knowledge of the car, even racing in the wet. The most difficult part of the race was just after the restart when I struggled for balance on the wets and intermediates, but when I switched to slicks the performance was pretty good." Q: Does the team have a better idea of the pecking order yet?
NH: "We're only at the start of the season - we've only had two race weekends, so we still need to wait and see. Because the midfield is so compact nobody can afford to relax. We all need to push hard to improve performance and with 18 races still to go there's plenty of time to do that." Q: What are your thoughts ahead of this weekend's race in China?
NH: "It's not my favourite race of the year, but they've done a good job to build a really impressive facility and it's a fun track to drive. It's difficult to predict how well we will do there, but given how close the grid is at the moment I think it should be a good show for everyone who is watching." Source: Force India