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F1 World Chants “Hulkenback” as Fan Favorite Nico Hulkenberg Makes Glorious Return

Published 11/17/2022, 5:16 AM EST

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“It’s Hulkenback!” Haas F1 has announced Nico Hulkenberg to replace Mick Schumacher for 2023. After being out of a full-time seat since 2019, Nico Hulkenberg is officially confirmed to return to F1 for next season. Haas was due to confirm their driver line-up for next season and Team principal Guenther Steiner had assured they will do so before the Abu Dhabi GP.

Nico Hulkenberg started his F1 career with Williams back in 2010. In 2011 and 2012, he raced for Force India and later rejoined them in 2014, after a year at Sauber in 2013. Nico’s last raced at Renault for 3 seasons from 2017 to 2019. However, the Enstone team decided to drop Hulkenberg for the 2020 season and signed up Esteban Ocon.

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The German stepped in as a substitute driver for Racing Point (formerly Force India) in 2020 in three races at Silverstone and Nurburgring. Since then, Hulkenberg has been the reserve driver for Aston Martin (renamed from Racing Point) in the last 2 seasons. He substituted Sebastian Vettel in the first two races of 2022 in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia when Vettel was down due to COVID.

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There were speculations of Nico getting a full-time seat at Haas, as Mick Schumacher‘s contract was expiring at the end of 2022. Now that his seat is confirmed officially, fans have reacted to the Hulk’s return to the grid on social media.

Fan Reactions on return of Nico Hulkenberg to F1

F1 Fans have frenzied social media with several #Hulkenback memes and podium memes (as Hulkenberg is yet to get a podium in F1).

Haas will be Hulkenberg’s 5th different team considering Aston Martin is the same team renamed twice during his career. Here are some more reactions.

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It will be quite ironic to see Daniel Ricciardo out of a seat in 2023 while his former teammate will race for Haas. Quite the turn of events!

Besides Hulkenberg’s return to F1, fans are upset about Mick Schumacher being dropped by Haas as well. Here are some of the reactions to Mick Schumacher being out of a drive for 2023.

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At the age of 35, Hulkenberg once again has got an opportunity to prove his mettle in F1. Though it has come at the expense of Mick Schumacher, who had a roller coaster of a 2022 season. Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner has been saying that they are looking for experience and consistency in their drivers. Thus, Mick Schumacher has not fallen into their scheme of things for 2023.

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Watch This Story: Saudi Arabian GP Qualifying moments ft. Mick Schumacher’s Horrific crash

Eventually, the Hulk is back and we will see how he blends in with Kevin Magnussen and the whole Haas team. With Haas promising to be on the upward trajectory, the German will look forward to maybe getting that podium finally. What do you think about Hulkenberg’s return?

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Written by:

Aishwary Gaonkar

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Aishwary Gaonkar is an F1 Author at EssentiallySports. Having completed his postgrad, he has set out to venture into the world of Sports Journalism. He is an ardent fan of F1 and has been following the most prestigious form of motor racing for over a decade now.
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Edited by:

Ajinkya Aswale