Hamilton snubbed from F1 star’s top three drivers as shock rival selected

Haas star Nico Hulkenberg has expressed his admiration for Alpine rival Pierre Gasly and pointed out that many people underestimate the French driver.

Gasly’s move from AlfaTauri to Alpes surprised Hulkenberg. Hulkenberg believes Gasly made the bold but right decision and showed his talents in the French team. Despite a difficult season in the Alps, Hulkenberg considers Gasly one of the top three drivers behind last season’s world champion Max Verstappen and veteran Fernando Alonso.

This places Gasly ahead of Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton in Hulkenberg’s ratings, showing his high regard for Gasly’s performance. Nico Hulkenberg is impressed by Pierre Gasly’s performance Pierre Gasly switched teams from Alfa Tauri to Alpe last season.

Hulkenerg: Gasly is very fast.

“We don’t underestimate that Pierre [Gasly] changed the team and was immediately at a very good level,” Hulkenberg told Motorsport-Magazin.

“Many drivers will tell you from experience that it takes time to get both the car and the team back on the road. “Usually it takes time and he was immediately at the level of Esteban (Ocon) and often at the top of qualifying. I think this is a great achievement.”

Hulkenberg believed Gasly had a better year in 2023 than Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton.

Asked if people don’t understand the difficulty of changing teams, Hulkenberg said: “You can see everything from the outside, but you can’t judge from the outside because it’s a feeling. “As a journalist, you’re not in the car, so you don’t understand how different it is, how different the dynamics are.

“This is still a process that takes time to fully adapt and adapt to your driving style. “Especially now, with no testing and very limited driving time on race weekends, it usually takes a long time. I think he did it very, very quickly and very well.