Audi targetting Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg as the Renault 2018 teammates set for a reunion: Reports

Recent reports claim that Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg could reunite as teammates as the Sauber F1 team's owner, Audi, targets both drivers for their future lineup.

After Ferrari announced that Lewis Hamilton would replace Carlos Sainz in 2025, the latter instantly became a candidate for many teams since he would have no seat in F1 after 2024. The Sainz family has a strong connection with Audi. The Ferrari driver's father, Sainz Sr., participates in the Rally Raid series with Audi's team. According to Auto Motor und Sport, the German giants are interested in the Spanish F1 driver.

On the other hand, Nico Hulkenberg returned to F1 with Haas in 2023 after participating in a few F1 races as a replacement driver for Racing Point (currently Aston Martin). However, he complained about the American team's car being extremely slow, hinting that he was not happy with the team. This sparked conversations about him leaving for Audi, especially since he was German.

Audi plans to take complete ownership of the Sauber F1 team by the 2026 F1 season when the FIA will allow teams to develop and use their brand-new power units. The governing body will also make major changes to the technical regulations.

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Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg's partnership at Renault in 2018 explored

Both Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg are no strangers to each other, as they have been teammates with each other in 2018 at Renault. Hulkenberg proved his worth by obliterating his teammate Jolyon Palmer in 2017, while Carlos Sainz was also ahead of his Toro Rosso teammate Daniil Kvyat in championship standings.

Sainz eventually replaced Jolyon Palmer at Renault in 2018 and started racing alongside the German.

At the start of the 2018 F1 season, Hulkenberg was much stronger, having been in the team for a year longer than Sainz. However, the Spaniard started performing better during the European leg of the season. Eventually, the German driver regained his supremacy in the final few races.

Here is how both fared against each other in the 2018 F1 season:

• Qualifying: 13-8 Nico Hulkenberg
• Race (neither drivers DNF): 8-4 Nico Hulkenberg
• Championship Points: 69-53 Nico Hulkenberg
• DNFs: 7-2 Nico Hulkenberg

In conclusion, Nico Hulkenberg was better than Carlos Sainz during their partnership in 2018. Hulk qualified higher, finished races higher, and scored more points than Sainz. The surprising element was that Hulkenberg performed better even when he had more DNFs than the Spanish driver.