90 replies to this topic

[toolish]

Dear all, I've been granted the opportunity to ask Nico Hülkenberg five questions for an article previewing the Belgian GP - I'm not writing for the F1 incrowd, but for the general public. Naturally I'd like those questions to be informed and original, so feel free to feed me any question that springs to mind - thanks!

[Jon83]

Nico, why are you so good!?

[1Devil1]

What did you do that you get overlooked despite your formidable performance? Is your height a problem for the top teams?
What are your top three drivers currently?

[SealTheDiffuser]

Do you wear contact lenses or had laser surgery?

[FullThrottleF1]

Do you like your nickname 'The Hulk'?

[SealTheDiffuser]

Do you think your chances for are Ferrari seat are zilch because you are German. / or not proven enough.

[SealTheDiffuser]

"What was the biggest difference driving style wise between 2013 and 2014/2015 V6 era, as we have seen you had some difficulties in 2014?"

[SealTheDiffuser]

Do you think you are faster than F1 GP winner Maldonado?

[SealTheDiffuser]

Will you be in F1 in 2016?

 

If yes, what Team?

[Jimisgod]

FERRARI CONTRACT.

Edited by Jimisgod, 15 July 2015 - 12:09.

[Brazzers]

Can you say the word 'squirrel'? 

[CurbPainter]

Have you been underperforming up until recently, and if so, do you think you can keep your current form to last over seasons to justify a seat at a top team ? 

[1Devil1]

Can you say the word 'squirrel'?

If you try Eichhörnchen instead

[Diablobb81]

Le Mans or F1? Which is more exciting, better from a drivers perspective.

What would you change about F1?

[MNader]

How differently do the teams operate in Lemans/WEC than they do in F1. 

 

all levels, from Mechanics to Engineers to managers.

 

 

Which 3 current drivers would he like to compete against in equal machinery

[Buttoneer]

If it's for the general public, questions about setup are probably a waste of your limited questions.

Nico, you were part of the race winning team at Le mans this year. What advice would you give your fellow F1 drivers who might be thinking about a Le Mans drive next year?

[Afterburner]

'Apart from winning the race, describe your favorite moment during the 24 Hours of Le Mans.'

[SenorSjon]

What happened in 2013-2014 when McLaren (Perez), Ferrari (Kimi) and Red Bull (Ricciardo) all passed up on the opportunity to sign you for a drive?

[Jon83]

What happened in 2013-2014 when McLaren (Perez), Ferrari (Kimi) and Red Bull (Ricciardo) all passed up on the opportunity to sign you for a drive?

 

Those teams would need to answer that, not Nico.

[RealRacing]

There has been a lot of talk about the bad state F1 is in and how relatively boring it is to drive these cars. With rule changes coming in 2017, what would be the 5 most important things you would like to change in F1? 

[Seanspeed]

"What has been your favourite season so far in F1 in terms of personal enjoyment?"

[TurnOffTheLights]

I'd try to find 5 questions, that are not asked all the time by others, again and again, with slight modifiations.

That way you (and we) will get to know something really new about him - and I imagine for Hülkenberg it could give some diversity to the boredom of usual questions, too, so with lots of luck involved he would be really thinking about his answer instead of just pr-roboting.

 

That's why I like this question, for example:

 

Do you wear contact lenses or had laser surgery?

 

Despite the fact, it has already been asked and answered some years ago:

http://www.mopo.de/m...8,22026754.html

 

"Till now I've been driving with contact lenses. But in winter I had a laser surgery. It's not like the lenses were hampering me, but in some situations it has been unpleasant and not ideal: with watery eyes you've got blurred vision. It's also more pleasant for all the flying, if you don't need optical aid."

Edited by TurnOffTheLights, 15 July 2015 - 12:38.

[redreni]

I suppose you could ask him about driver weight, but you'll know what the answer will be. There may be a valid comparison with LMP1, although I should have thought that's less of an issue since it's easier for them to run to the weight limit, so it's normally the lighter driver that has to run ballast in his seat insert to bring him up to the heavier driver's weight, rather than the heavier driver having to run with a weight penalty. And even if you carry a weight penalty in LMP1, it will have a proportionately lesser effect than the same number of KG over the minimum in F1, because the cars are heavier anyway.

 

But if it hasn't been asked already, you could ask him if Tandy and Bamber were running lighter than him in terms of overall weight at Le Mans (this will depend on whether Porsche were able to run on the minimum weight limit with him in the car, and on whether the difference in weight between Hulk and the other drivers was small enough to be equalised by way of seat -insert ballast for the lighter drivers).

 

And you could ask him about the trend for young drivers to switch from single seaters to sportscars earlier in their careers, chasing the paid drives. Are they right to do so?

 

He's in a bit of a unique position to talk about how F1 and factory LMP1 racing compares in terms of the feel and performance of the cars, the quality of the racing, the enjoyment factor of running on his own in either type of car, and how the wheel-to-wheel racing compares. We know F1 is the pinnacle, but is driving an LMP1 hybrid more enjoyable? (Perhaps an unfair question, since most racing drivers enjoy having the fastest car, and Nico hasn't had that in F1, but there it is).

Edited by redreni, 15 July 2015 - 12:43.

[SealTheDiffuser]

Do you think Claire Williams is hot?

[brr]

Ask what you want but don't call him Hunkelberg.

[1Devil1]

Ask what you want but don't call him Hunkelberg.

or Hulkenburg 

[TurnOffTheLights]

Regarding laser surgery: maybe you could ask him, if he is happy with it (he now has >2 years experience with his "new eyes") and if he would recommend laser surgery for non-racing drivers or should they rather stick to contact lenses?

[SealTheDiffuser]

Regarding laser surgery: maybe you could ask him, if he is happy with it (he now has >2 years experience with his "new eyes") and if he would recommend laser surgery for non-racing drivers or should they rather stick to contact lenses?

 

never do it (unless you are really blind then it might worth the risk)

Edited by SealTheDiffuser, 15 July 2015 - 12:52.

[Seanspeed]

never do it (unless you are really blind then it might worth the risk)

Why?

I want to get it done. I'm not super blind, but I'd love to be able to see well without wearing glasses/contacts.

Edited by Seanspeed, 15 July 2015 - 12:54.

[superden]

Why?

I want to get it done. I'm not super blind, but I'd love to be able to see well without wearing glasses/contacts.

I know a guy who had it done, now he has to wear glasses to drive at night due to the procedure going awry in one eye.

Edited by superden, 15 July 2015 - 12:56.

[YoungGun]

Why?

I want to get it done. I'm not super blind, but I'd love to be able to see well without wearing glasses/contacts.

 

It didn't help Jacques Villeneuve, just saying.

 

 

Nico who do you rate as the top 3 drivers in F1?

[1Devil1]

Why?

I want to get it done. I'm not super blind, but I'd love to be able to see well without wearing glasses/contacts.

 

Must be a difference to do it as F1 driver or a normal person. You need perfect vision to drive. I guess the risk for them is much higher than for other people. I heard those operations are quit safe these days, if you are willing to go to pay for quality. 10 years ago my optician told me not to do it, nobody knows about the long term effects

Edited by 1Devil1, 15 July 2015 - 13:14.

[SealTheDiffuser]

never do it (unless you are really blind then it might worth the risk)

 

just read that the risk of failure is much higher the higher your " blindness is "  , saver for normal shortsightedness, but still too big risk for me personally... I d rather wear glasses (much better styles to find nowadays) ... only drawback is sports/watersports/skiing but there are contactlenses for.

[FerrariV12]

If you continue to be overlooked for rides with front running F1 teams, at what point would you consider a full time switch to the WEC with Porsche, if it was offered?

[MNader]

Another question just sprang to mind.

 

We see a lot of young divers now heading to drive GT cars and not single seaters. What is his opinion on that, and did he consider switching to sportscars/GT instead of single seaters, if he can go back in time would he consider doing Sportscars/GT as a young driver with/instead of single seaters?

[HeidfeldsBeard]

Who would you rather be trapped in a lift with for 24 hours; Eddie Jordan or Jacques Villeneuve?

[Disgrace]

Biggie or Tupac?

[goingthedistance]

Do the changes to the starting procedures (to be introduced in Spa) actually represent a real change in terms of driver input, in your opinion, or is it just fiddling around the edges? 

[Jamiednm]

"Nico, here is a list of every F1 driver since 1970. Please rank them in order of how highly you rate them, thanks lad."

[maximilian]

What is your opinion of IndyCar ovals racing, and would you have any interest in running the Indy 500 some day?

[ViMaMo]

How does it feel to drive a WEC Porsche Hybrid compared to a F1 car? Which do you enjoy more? Did you have to change your driving style a lot, did it take a lot of time? 

[thegforcemaybewithyou]

Nico, if you know the exact peak power figures of the old V8(without KERS support) and the current V6 engines(including ERS support), could you please answer the following question: Is the difference in peak power between these two engines more than 50hp?

[ANF]

I wonder if there are any signs that the win at Le Mans has made him more attractive on the driver market. (After all, he's driving for Force India, a team that is struggling financially; he doesn't bring any money to the team and has said that he wouldn't want to.)

[noikeee]

Would you rather fight a horse-sized duck, or 50 duck-sized horses?

[Atreiu]

Has radio coaching gone too far?

Would you rather drive in radio silence while managing fuel, tyres and ERS by yourself?

[HeidfeldsBeard]

Would you rather fight a horse-sized duck, or 50 duck-sized horses?

 

Where does that even come from? I keep seeing that everywhere!

[RekF1]

What's so special about Brazil? Pole position there for Williams and nearly a win for FI.

[Boing 2]

I'd like to know if his manager is activley approaching top teams for a drive and if so what is the reason given for no doors being opened given his high regard amongst observers.

[jonpollak]

What's your favorite thing to do outside racing?

Jp

[CurbPainter]

I wonder if there are any signs that the win at Le Mans has made him more attractive on the driver market. (After all, he's driving for Force India, a team that is struggling financially; he doesn't bring any money to the team and has said that he wouldn't want to.)

 

 

So has the phone been ringing more since your Le Mans victory? Have you noticed more interest from other teams?

 

NH: (mumbles) “No.”

 

http://www.skysports...s/12040/9908034