Audi F1 Couldn’t Pass in Madrid, So It Found Another Way to Score

[Source: Audi Revolut F1 Team]

What a difference a week makes. One week after Kimi Antonelli overtook 26 cars at Monza, the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring saw very little passing by anyone. Formula 1 is supposed to be about racing other cars on track, but sometimes the quickest way past a rival is to never actually pass them. Audi F1 proved that Sunday in Madrid, using smart strategy and some seriously quick work in the pits to earn another championship point.

Nico Hülkenberg finished the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring in 10th place, securing the final points-paying position. That may not sound spectacular on paper, but overtaking proved extremely difficult around the new circuit. With drivers circulating at similar speeds, Audi had to find another way forward.

The pit crew delivered. Hülkenberg started the 57-lap race on new soft tires before an early Virtual Safety Car presented Audi with an opportunity. The team brought him in on Lap 14 and switched him onto a new set of hard tires. More importantly, Hülkenberg entered the pits behind Esteban Ocon and emerged ahead of him thanks to a lightning-fast stop.

“That was probably the key moment of our race because it gave us the track position we needed,” Hülkenberg said. With passing so difficult, that position proved critical. He managed the hard tires to the finish and even came close to catching Arvid Lindblad late in the race.

Audi Tried Two Different Strategies

On the other side of the garage, Gabriel Bortoleto started on hard tires and went deep into the race, not stopping until Lap 47. Audi hoped a late Safety Car, Virtual Safety Car, or red flag might give Bortoleto a strategic advantage or effectively provide him with a free pit stop. Unfortunately, that break never arrived, leaving him 13th at the finish.

Still, Racing Director Allan McNish was understandably pleased with the team’s execution. He said Audi “played a real team game” and credited the crew directly for Hülkenberg’s result, saying the point was “delivered by the team in the pits.” That single point also matters in the bigger picture. Audi now has 17 points and sits just four behind Haas for seventh place in the Constructors’ Championship.

Audi may not yet have the outright pace it wants, and McNish acknowledged that poor starts remain a weakness. But Madrid demonstrated another encouraging sign for the young F1 program. When the drivers couldn’t make progress by passing cars on the track, Audi found a way to pass one, in the pits.