Nico Hulkenberg joked that the opening lap of Formula 1’s Bahrain Grand Prix was “like a warzone” as he worked his way forwards from the penultimate row of the grid.
Hulkenberg started only 17th after a spate of problems in qualifying but vaulted up to 11th by the end of a frantic opening lap, which included a clash between Lance Stroll and Romain Grosjean.
It acted as the platform from which Hulkenberg moved further up the order to hold sixth until a sudden loss of power halted his Renault with three laps remaining.
“I did a pretty good job,” he said. “A great drive and came through that very nicely.
“Lap one was like a war zone. It was crazy, cars all over the place, contact, sparks, parts flying around. One I got hit in the helmet.
“Everything was in that race, it was a spectacular race to be in; I did a lot of overtaking, which is fun.
“So it would have been really nice to reward myself and the team with those points. We just need to bounce back another time.”
Hulkenberg was joined on the side-lines mere seconds later by team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, who suffered an MGU-K failure, leaving the pair of R.S.19s stricken in the Turn 1/2 run-off.
Hulkenberg stressed that Renault has to get a handle on its reliability problems but urged the manufacturer to work “as a unit” rather than apply unnecessary criticism.
“We have a history with those problems so we need to get on top of them, we need to do it quickly,” he said.
“For sure, it is a hard one to swallow, not just for me, it is for everyone.
“That is when you realise that F1 is a team sport. The engine guys at Viry will be very devastated and down. There is no point hammering on them. We need to work as a unit and help each other.”
