Nico Hulkenberg, Pietro Fittipaldi react to post-season testing session with Haas

Nico Hülkenberg took part in the post-season test in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, kicking off his return to F1 with Haas F1 Team. Hülkenberg stated that the programme provided him with a significant amount of knowledge, which he plans to analyse in the coming weeks. Hülkenberg was pleased with his ability to cope with the physically demanding task of driving VF-22 after completing 110 laps of the Yas Marina Circuit. He stated that the winter break will be crucial in preparing for the upcoming season as he returns to the sport after three years away.

“It was a good day of work, good running, collected many impressions and a lot of data – which was the target. We successfully went through our program. There’s a lot of things to pick through, digest and analyze now and over the next couple of weeks with the team. Today was about learning the tires for 2023, learning their characteristics and with these test days you have a bit more time to try stuff,” the former Renault man said.

“I’m satisfied and happy with the day. There was a bit of human degradation towards the end day, but I coped better than expected to be honest – so that’s good. There’s now three months of hard-core preparation to get ready, I have a plan and I know what I have to do,” he added.

Following his FP1 appearance at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Haas Reserve Driver Pietro Fittipaldi was given the opportunity to drive the VF-22 for the post-season test. Fittipaldi said he was well acclimated to the car and able to jump right into the programme because of his previous experience driving the Haas car for the team’s mandated young driver tests this year.

“It was an amazing day of testing. We got just under 100 laps of testing in using the new 2023 tires. Again, I felt pretty comfortable in the car and fast off the bat – so that allowed us to kick on with the test program. It was a very positive day from my side. Thanks to the team for the opportunity,” he said.