NEW DELHI: As soon as the British Grand Prix finished, a member of the Mercedes crew rushed over the paddock carrying a big paper bag that was rattling with its contents. An Aston Martin employee performed the same action a few minutes later. Both were on their way to give champagne bottles to Sauber at the pit lane's conclusion.

Teams typically save the bubbly for celebration, but Sauber's most recent podium result was in 2012. Additionally, the Hinwil-based team wasn't expecting much joy, since Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto began the race in the 17th and 19th positions, respectively.

However, against all expectations, Hulkenberg shocked his team, the paddock, and himself by finishing third and bringing an end to his unwelcome Formula 1 record of 239 races, 5,593 days, and eight team changes. It took the 37-year-old this long to finally end his wait for a podium finish, which he had been waiting for ever since his debut in 2010.

"I'm not sure I can wrap my head around what we've just accomplished. It feels good. After ecstatic pitlane celebrations, Hulkenberg remarked, "It's been a long time coming, hasn't it? I always knew we have it in us, I had it in me somewhere... it's pretty surreal, to be honest."

Before ultimately landing an F1 seat with Williams, Hulkenberg was one of the bright young talents in formula racing around twenty years ago, having won every junior championship available: 2005 Formula BMW, 2006–07 A1 Grand Prix, 2008 Formula 3 Euro, and the 2009 GP2 (previously Formula 2).

When he won pole position at the 2010 Brazilian GP, becoming the sixth youngest driver in F1 at the time, he made an immediate impression. He was left without a seat in 2011 despite a strong performance in his debut season, but then he made a surprise comeback with Force India in 2012.

Following eight years of racing, he lost his place in the paddock after the 2019 season when no team extended him a seat. Despite the fact that the German had resigned himself to being compelled to retire, he made comebacks as a replacement for drivers who were impacted by COVID-19 in four races spanning from 2020 to 2022.

Prior to switching to Sauber earlier this year for his second stint with the Swiss team, he was fortunate enough to be given a race seat at Haas in 2023 as a result of a change in management that prioritized experience over youth.

And he hasn't let me down. He finished seventh in the Australian GP, the season's opening race, after battling back from 17th place on the grid. He improved from 15th to fifth position in Spain, from 13th to eighth in Canada, and from 20th and last place in Austria to ninth.

Even at Silverstone, 'the Hulk' began 19th, but he never imagined that he would be on the podium, cheered by 168,000 spectators, even if he defeated the German crowd favorite Lewis Hamilton, who finished fourth, in a thrilling and topsy-turvy race in the rain.

"I was thinking Lewis is going to give it all in front of his home crowd and I was like, 'sorry guys — it's also my day! I've got to stick my neck out,'" Hulkenberg said on Sunday.

Prior to his first podium ceremony, it was clear that Hulkenberg was out of place as he was unwinding in the cooldown room with championship leader Oscar Piastri when race winner Lando Norris brought in the German's helmet—an F1 protocol—along with his own. Before Norris smiled and put both helmets in their respective slots, 'The Hulk' was taken aback and questioned why he would require the helmet.

Before sampling the fizzy on the podium for the first time, he came out to greet the crowd with a big grin on his face. The festivities carried on in the Sauber garage with champagne provided by Aston Martin and Mercedes.

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