F1 | Abiteboul: “Hulkenberg's mistake coincides with important discussions”

The Renault boss admitted that Nico Hulkenberg's crash during the German Grand Prix, while he was fighting for the top four, moved everyone in the team.

“You wonder about the psychological side, but so many things have happened that you can't blame him”, Cyril Abiteboul told Auto Hebdo.

Nico Hulkenberg made his Formula 1 debut in 2010, driving for Williams, later competing with Force India, Sauber and Renault. At the age of 31, the German is still looking for the first podium of his career, an opportunity that slipped from his grasp in the Hockenheim race, thanks to a mistake on the last corner.

At the moment his future at Renault is not yet certain and this indecision coincides with the missed podium, which is why Abiteboul confessed that there are important discussions with the driver. There are also rumors that his place for 2020 could be taken by Esteban Ocon:

“We must be honest, the incident comes at a time where there are important discussions taking place. We are evaluating our options and he knows it, it's part of the game. But there are also feelings, Nico has been with us for three years."

The team principal, however, recognized that there are evident difficulties in the team:

“The aerodynamics of our cars are not at the level we expected.”

Renault has now slipped to sixth position in the world rankings and the team's crisis has also been worsened by the accident of a truck on its way to Hungary, where the Grand Prix will be held this weekend:

"The driver, who was driving within the rules, is conscious and did not suffer serious injuries. He was transported to hospital for further checks.", Renault said in a statement.

News from a little while ago furthermore is the appointment of Alain Prost as non-executive director of the French team.