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After spending three consecutive years at Force India, Nico Hulkenberg is settling into his new team Renault, who he joined for the 2017 season on a long term deal.
After spending most of his career in the midfield pack, Hulkenberg ventured off to Renault, a works team, in a bid to secure a top seat for the future. Renault has previously set out the target of returning to the front of the grid by 2020, last winning a championship in 2006 at the hands of Fernando Alonso and Giancarlo Fisichella.
When asked how he feels within his new team, Hulkenberg replied: "The mood is good. Very positive. You feel the positive vibes of change. So far things have gone pretty much as per our expectations. Where we are is where I thought in the winter we could be.
"Everything is within the plan. Generally I am happy, because I see that there is a lot of potential in our car - our package - and that makes me optimistic for the year. Having said that, it is now our job to extract the most from that potential: to simply do the right things, because the base is good.
"Well, these six points, we had a few hiccups at the first two races. We could have done better. It didn’t happen, but it was a good learning curve - and it is a good spirit in the team."
Despite all the praise that the German has received, he is yet to finish on the podium, coming very close a number of times. Going forward, the 29-year-old is confident he will be able to enjoy success with the French manufacturer.
"It already feels like home. I blended in very quickly. In the past I’ve struggled more when I changed teams. Yes, I was younger back then, but this team’s culture comes very much my way. The bedding-in was very quick.
"Some steps the team has already done. More steps to move up in the pecking order still need to be done in the next couple of months - or let’s say next 12 months. Looking down the road there is still a lot we have to do, but from where we’ve come I would say we have done pretty well."
Fergal Walsh
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He certainly seems to have settles in well, lets hope they can produce a great car next year