Verstappen happy with Hulkenberg's return: "He deserves a place in F1"

Nico Hulkenberg is back on the Formula 1 paddock for the first time in a while and that makes a lot of positive noises. Many drivers like the fact that the German is back. Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are two of the biggest advocates. 

A sore neck for The Hulk

"Certainly not the best way to get to a Grand Prix. Copse is full throttle, so it's a pretty intense combination of turns, so I wouldn't be surprised if he woke up this morning with quite a few bruises and sores, but he's generally always been in very good shape," said Hamilton, who was happy to see him.

"I saw him walk in and he looked like he'd never left. If you don't know the car, you don't know what tools you have or what simulations the team uses. I can't even tell you how far behind he is. But he's a great driver, and if anyone can do this, it's him."

Hulkenberg can speak Dutch again

Max also saw Hulkenberg returning to the paddock. In recent years, the two have often met and the Dutch that Hulkenberg can speak makes communication between them even easier. "After the first training session, I could see that his neck was hanging on one side. He has a rather long neck, so that's not nice to have in F1 either," says Verstappen at the press conference.

"It's difficult, you can train as much as you want; the first time you go in an F1 car at these speeds, especially around here, you'll have pain. You can train with your neck every day, but the first time it's always painful, so I'm 100 per cent sure he felt it this morning. He is happy to be here and he should be here anyway because I think he still deserves his place in the sport," the Dutchman concludes with praise.