Nico Hulkenberg believes he can meet Red Bull’s expectations from a driver alongside Max Verstappen in Formula 1.
Last week, motorsport advisor Helmut Marko confirmed the German, who stood in for Lance Stroll at the Eifel Grand Prix, was an option if the team decided not to continue with Alex Albon in 2021.
However, arguing the case for the Thai driver, the Austrian also said that Albon can reach the required level in order to keep his seat at Red Bull, that being within three-tenths of Verstappen in qualifying.
Hulkenberg those also thinks he can do the same.
“On my very good days, yes,” he was quoted by GrandPrix247.com.
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Nico, who moved up from 20th to eighth in the race at the Nurburgring after only stepping in the car on Saturday, also spoke of his wish to challenge himself against Verstappen.
“In terms of speed, Max is one, if not the fastest and an absolute killer,” he admitted. “It is a huge task to have him as a teammate already.
“I would like to measure myself against him. Let’s see if it will come to that.
“It [Red Bull] is the best option in terms of car performance, that’s a fact, but beyond that, three F1 cockpits are still available.”
Also after the Eifel GP, Marko confirmed he had spoken to Hulkenberg before the race weekend when Albon’s first Covid-19 test came back as inconclusive.
And the 33-year-old confirms he does get on well with the Austrian.
“We always had a good relationship,” he said.
“Red Bull has a good competitive car and wants to achieve the best possible result. You need good drivers for that.
“This year I wasn’t racing all the time, but the races I did probably made a bit of an impression.”