Hulkenberg: 'All to play for' from fourth in Sao Paulo

Nico Hulkenberg believes there is “all to play for” in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after qualifying sixth in the wet and gaining two places to start fourth. The Audi driver produced one of the stand-out performances of a rain-hit session at Interlagos, recovering from a lost Friday to put himself near the front.

Why it matters:

Hulkenberg’s pace gives Audi its best qualifying result of the season at a track where driver confidence in mixed conditions can outweigh raw car performance. Starting fourth also puts him in prime position to score heavily in a tight midfield fight.

The details:

• Qualifying was delayed by heavy rain before Hulkenberg set the fifth-fastest time in Q1 and Q2, ending up sixth overall.
• He will move up to fourth because George Russell and Charles Leclerc carry grid penalties.
• The German missed all of Friday running after technical problems, making his recovery especially impressive.
• “Typical, classic Sao Paulo,” Hulkenberg said. “You never know when the shower is going to hit you and how hard it is.”
• He added that the rain helped make up for his lack of track time: “I was happy, confident with the car, managed to produce good laps.”
• Gabriel Bortoleto, his home crowd teammate, crashed out in Q1 at Turn 12 and was left “very disappointed with myself.”

What’s next:

Hulkenberg is refusing to set a firm target, saying Audi must “try to race clean and get the maximum out of it tomorrow.” From fourth, with rain still possible, that could mean a significant result.