Nico Hulkenberg scored his best result in six years as the Sauber driver came home in fifth place in the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix after overtaking Ferrari ace Lewis Hamilton.
Only three times in the 37-year-old’s Formula 1 career has Hulkenberg ever secured a better finish than his P5 in the Spanish GP last week. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya race was even only the second time that the German has finished in the points in the 2025 F1 season.
Hulkenberg returned to Sauber this term after agreeing to sign a multi-year factory contract with Audi ahead of the German automotive giant taking over the team in 2026. He assumed the role of team leader and has Sauber’s only points from his P7 in Australia and P5 in Spain.
Gary Anderson spotted an ‘exciting’ sidepod upgrade on Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber in Spain
Hulkenberg made full use of Sauber’s upgrades at the Spanish GP to rise through the order after only qualifying in P16 and starting in P15, after Aston Martin star Lance Stroll withdrew due to injury in Barcelona. The German also overtook Ferrari ace Hamilton for P6 on Lap 65.
Sauber then saw Hulkenberg move into P5 after Red Bull racer Max Verstappen’s penalty for driving into George Russell in Spain. It returned an immediate reward for Sauber’s upgraded front wing to meet the new rule and sidepod, which caught the attention of Gary Anderson.
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“The front wing Sauber introduced doesn’t look massively different,” Anderson has told The Race. “It all gets a bit more exciting when we get to the sidepod treatment.
“Previously, Sauber simply had a sidepod top surface inner gully leading down into the centreline of the car to help with the diffuser performance. For Barcelona, Sauber altered the outer ‘rolled bathtub’ edge and reduced it midway along the sidepod.”
Sauber’s sidepod update could make the rest of Nico Hulkenberg’s car ‘suffer’
Sauber designed their upgraded sidepod fitted on Hulkenberg’s car at the Spanish GP to get some of the airflow on the upper surface to spill into the coke bottle area. Gabriel Bortoleto initially ran Sauber’s previous specification before getting the upgrades ahead of qualifying.
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But Anderson also notes a potential cause for concern if the airflow created by Sauber’s new sidepod front corner undercut is not consistent. The ex-Jordan technical director adds that it may negatively affect the front wing and the outer edge of the floor on Hulkenberg’s Sauber.
He added: “If this airflow that is being pulled through that sidepod front corner undercut is not consistent, then everything can suffer.
“So, for a small increase in overall downforce when the car is running in an ideal world, it can very easily turn into a major loss of downforce when the car is running in what could be called its normal environment.”
Bortoleto was unable to make full use of Sauber’s upgrades at last Sunday’s Spanish GP. The Brazilian rookie qualified ahead of Hulkenberg in P12, which is the 20-year-old’s best starting position. But Bortoleto missed out on his first points, having finished in a personal-best P12.
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