Drivers praise Hülkenberg for maiden Formula One podium
Fifteen years after his Formula One debut, Nico Hülkenberg finally scored his maiden podium at his 239th race.
The Kick Sauber driver ended his podium drought with the help of a clever team strategy at the British Grand Prix on Sunday.
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But achievement was even more impressive because he started 19th on the grid and had to fight hard to hold-off nine-time Silverstone winner Lewis Hamilton.
Team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto led the rounds of deserved praise saying: "Seeing him fight for the podium and achieve this result after so many years in F1 means a lot. He is the best team-mate I have ever worked with – both as a driver and as a person – and he absolutely deserves this moment."
Four-time defending champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull greeted Hülkenberg during the cool-down lap and was swift to go over to him in parc feme to shake hands.
"The race wasn't that enjoyable for me but it was nice to see Nico get his first podium and I'm sure he will be celebrating tonight," said Verstappen, who could only manage a fifth place after spinning on track and dropping to 10th.
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Williams' Carlos Sainz, a former team-mate of Hülkenberg at Renault in 2018, said that the German has always been a top-five driver in the grid."
"Honestly, for me, the fact that people kept cursing him, the fact that he didn't have any podiums, for me it was completely irrelevant. His level of talent and race execution is incredible," he added.
Hamilton, who chased Hülkenberg in his Ferrari in the closing stages of the race, was disappointed, but happy for the Kick Sauber driver.
"Third place felt within reach at times but credit to Nico on his first podium, he drove a strong race. It's a great achievement for him and his team."
The Mercedes team gifted Sauber several bottles of champagne to aid in the celebrations, while Aston Martin reportedly also made a contribution.
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CNN
26 minutes ago
- CNN
Superb Scottie Scheffler posts career-lowest major round to surge into ominous Open lead
If Scottie Scheffler is still wrestling with just why he wants to win the Open Championship, he's doing a remarkable job of hiding it. Three days after his extensive, existential rumination on the fleeting fulfilment of success, the world No. 1 ripped through the Royal Portrush course on Friday with the lowest major round of his career to take a one shot lead into the weekend in Northern Ireland. Eight birdies lifted the American to a seven-under 64 round, eclipsing the 65 he shot en route to his third major crown at the PGA Championship in May. Mere inches denied him from going one better, as his putted effort for a third consecutive birdie at the final hole pulled up agonizingly short. Already at 10-under par overall, it's an ominous sign for his competitors for the pre-tournament favorite to look so at ease in a tournament he has, by his sky-high standards, typically found harder to bend to his will. It remains the sole event in which Scheffler has yet to record a top-five finish, with just two of the 29-year-old's 15 top-10 major finishes coming at the game's oldest tournament. Yet, even wildly fluctuating weather doesn't seem to be stopping him from figuring it all out on his fifth Open start. 'We get to the first hole, it's still sunny. Then all of a sudden, you look around and it's super dark and it starts pouring rain. You're like, 'Boy, I wonder how long this is going to last,'' Scheffler told reporters on his return to the clubhouse. 'Fortunately, it didn't pour the whole time. We only had maybe four or five holes where it was really coming down, and I was able to take advantage of the holes where we had some good weather.' England's Matt Fitzpatrick sits within touching distance after shooting 66, a run of four straight birdies after the turn, the latest sign of a return to his best play. The 30-year-old clinched the US Open in 2022 but, since last winning an event in October 2023, has endured a dip in form that cratered, with him experiencing the 'lowest' feeling of his career after missing the cut with rounds of 78 and 72 at The Players Championship in March. Yet a tied-eighth finish at the US Open hinted that something was clicking, with the world No. 59 now full of belief that he can take the challenge to Scheffler. 'I wouldn't say I necessarily feel as much pressure … He's going to have the expectation to go out and dominate,' Fitzpatrick said. 'He's an exceptional player. He's World No. 1, and we're seeing Tiger-like stuff. I think the pressure is for him to win the golf tournament. For me, obviously, I hope I'm going to have some more home support than him, but it's an exciting position for me to be in, given where I was earlier this year.' American Brian Harman and China's Haotong Li lead the chasing pack, the pair shooting 65 and 67 respectively to head into the weekend one stroke back. Harman posted an identical second round en route to a commanding six shot victory at Royal Liverpool two years ago, when his love of hunting became a staple topic of press conferences and a source of controversy for some British tabloids. 'I was curious why everyone was asking so many questions about it,' he reflected after his bogey-free Friday. 'I didn't realize that everyone was so upset about it. It's a hill I'll die on. I'll sleep like a baby tonight.' Li may not boast the major-winning pedigree of his American counterpart, but the world No. 111 has history at The Open. The four-time European Tour winner fired a stunning closing 63 at Royal Birkdale in 2017 to climb to third and register the best ever finish by a Chinese golfer at a men's major. It's a source of confidence to a player that doesn't seem lacking in it, with Li once owning a wedge inscribed with the words, 'Haotong is the most handsome man in China.' 'I took an image [of the club] for Phil Mickelson, texted him, and he goes, 'Shame for your country.' It was fun,' Li told reporters. 'I think if I play my best, I can compete with anyone,' he added. Harman and Li sit three shots ahead of a five-strong group level at five-under par overall with American duo Chris Gotterup and Harris English, Scotland's Robert MacIntyre, England's Tyrrell Hatton and Denmark's Rasmus Højgaard. Home hero Rory McIlroy overcame struggles off the tee to shoot 69, a one-stroke improvement on his up-and-down opening round that leaves him with work to do if he is to secure what would be a storybook sixth career major. 'I've been somewhat close to my best over the first two days in little bits here and there,' said McIlroy, seven shots adrift from Scheffler. 'I'm going to need to have it all under control and have it all firing over the weekend to make a run.' The 36-year-old is at three-under par overall, safely clear of a cut line that he tearfully fell short of when the major returned to Royal Portrush for the first time in 68 years in 2019. Two-time US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau had looked destined to meet the same fate after toiling to a first round seven-over 78, only to follow it up with a stunning 65 to soar to one-over par overall, right on the cut mark. The American has historically found it more difficult to adapt his big-hitting game to the links courses across the pond, with the Open the only major he has yet to record a top-five finish in, yet DeChambeau looked in complete control as he made a 13-stroke improvement. 'I woke up this morning and I said, 'You know what, I can't give up,'' the American said. 'My dad always told me never to give up, to keep going, and that's what I did today. I was proud of the way I fought back, really persevered through some emotionally difficult moments, and to hold myself together and not get pissed and slam clubs and throw things and all that like I wanted to.' Yet plenty of big names will be departing the Causeway Coast prematurely, with 2021 victor Collin Morikawa, 2022 champion Cameron Smith and five-time major winner Brooks Koepka all falling well short of making the weekend.
New York Times
26 minutes ago
- New York Times
Open Championship 2025 Round 2: What to know as Scottie Scheffler takes the lead
In between summer showers, golf's inevitable force of nature stormed to the front of the Open pack on Friday. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler carded a second-round 64, the lowest score of his already-decorated major championship career. Supplementing Scheffler's usual brilliant iron play has been some of the best putting in his career to date. Frankly, it's been a terrifying development for the other 155 men in this week's field. Advertisement These are the top numbers and notes to know from the second round of the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush. 1. Scheffler made eight birdies on Friday, tied for the field high in a round this week and tied for a personal career best in any major round. That Scottie leads the field in strokes gained approach through two rounds is far from surprising – he's led the PGA Tour in that metric for three straight years. That he ranks second in the field in putting through 36 holes is the development shaping the top of the Open leaderboard. Scheffler struggled mightily on the greens last week at the Scottish Open, missing 17 putts inside 10 feet and finishing near the bottom of the field in strokes gained putting. Scottie's numbers were almost as dismal in his previous starts in this championship, sputtering near the bottom of the putting metrics over the last three years. That's been completely flipped on its head through two rounds at Portrush, as he's 30-of-31 putting inside 10 feet and has already holed six of 10 feet or longer. Perhaps we should take more stock in what Scottie's done on the greens throughout 2025 instead of recent or strictly links-related fodder. Scheffler is ranked 22nd on tour this season in strokes gained putting, a 140-spot leap from two years ago. Scheffler is now truly a complete statistical package – the only man in the top 25 this season on tour in every strokes gained metric. 2. This is the fourth time Scheffler has held the 36-hole lead or co-lead in a major championship. He went on to win the two previous times he did it at Augusta National, in 2022 and 2024. At the 2023 PGA, he shared the 36-hole lead with Viktor Hovland and Corey Conners, before ultimately finishing one stroke behind winner Brooks Koepka. Scheffler is the first reigning world number one player since Tiger Woods to hold the 36-hole lead at this championship. Woods actually did it three times – in 2000, 2005 and 2006. Tiger went on to win each instance. The last world number one not named Woods to lead at the halfway point was Nick Faldo in 1993 (finished second). Advertisement This is the 29th time in Open history a player has led by exactly one after 36 holes. Only five of the previous 28 went on to win. A significant caveat to that: the last to successfully convert such a lead at the halfway point was also the last number one to have the chance – Woods in 2006. 3. Scottie's prolonged run at the top of the sport is beginning to put him in extremely rarified air. Should Scheffler go on to win this weekend, he would be just the fourth player to win a Masters, PGA Championship and Open all before the age of 30. Only Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Woods have done that in the history of the game. Since the first Masters was held in 1934, only seven men have won a fourth career major at 29 or younger. Four of them – including Rory McIlroy – went on to complete the career Grand Slam. Last year, Xander Schauffele became the sixth man to win an Open Championship and the PGA in the same season. If Scheffler becomes the seventh, it will be the first time that has happened in consecutive years. 4. One stroke back and alone in second place is Matt Fitzpatrick, spurred by a rapidly improved iron game. As recently as last month's Travelers Championship, the 2022 U.S. Open champion was a bit of a mess with that facet of his repertoire, losing 0.05 strokes per round on average. But over his last 10 rounds – a stretch including the first two days here in Portrush – Fitzpatrick is picking up more than a stroke per round with this approach shots and hitting a tidy 75 percent greens in regulation. Fitzpatrick's best finish in a major since his win at Brookline was a T8 at May's PGA Championship. Faldo is both the last Englishman to win an Open and the last to win a second career major championship. 5. Lefty Brian Harman, a winner at Royal Liverpool two years ago, shares third place entering the weekend, just two shots behind his 2023 Ryder Cup teammate Scheffler. The Americans to win two Claret Jugs in three years (or less) is a heavy list: Walter Hagen, Bob Jones, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson and Woods. Advertisement While Harman's putter lifted him to glory in '23, it's been his ball striking carrying the weight so far this week. Harman enters Round 3 ranked in the top 10 in the field in both strokes gained off the tee and approach. Haotong Li, also two back, was the last man in the field to card a bogey this week, dropping his first (and only so far) shot of the week at No. 14 on Friday. Only Scheffler has gained more strokes with his approach play through two rounds this week than Haotong. 6. Speaking of the Ryder Cup, Tyrrell Hatton and Robert MacIntyre lead a group of five players in a tie for fifth. With rounds of 68 and 69, this is the first time Hatton has started a major championship with consecutive sub-70 scores. The fiery Englishman entered the week with a career 20 percent bogey-or-worse rate in his Open career. He's made just three through two rounds this week. Hatton's best career Open finish was a tie for fifth in 2016. MacIntyre carded a Friday 66 fueled by an excellent day with the driver. His tee ball at the fifth, a short par 4, was a perfect snapshot of the round: a 344-yard downwind strike to the green, resulting in a two-putt birdie. MacIntyre led all players in strokes gained off the tee in Round 2. 7. McIlroy, seven shots back, will need a special weekend in front of home supporters to lift himself into contention. McIlroy drove the ball significantly better in Round 2, hitting seven fairways (five more than Round 1) and gaining more than a stroke on the field with his tee shots. Through two days, McIlroy has hit driver just 11 times, a testament to both the discipline asked by Royal Portrush and the struggles McIlroy is currently fighting through with what is, historically, his greatest weapon. It's unlikely – but not unprecedented – for Rory to make a run. Six players have won the Open when trailing by seven or more through 36 holes, the last being Ernie Els in 2012. 8. Bryson DeChambeau authored a phenomenal turnaround on Friday, going from an opening 78 to a second round 64 to make the cut on the number. DeChambeau made seven birdies in Round 2 after not making any in his opening round. He is the first player to go birdie-less in Round 1 of an Open, then turn around and make seven or more in Round 2, since Camilo Villegas did it in 2008. Advertisement DeChambeau's quantum leap came with his irons. The two-time U.S. Open champion lost about three strokes to the field with his approach shots in Round 1 but gained roughly that many in Round 2. Bryson's 65 ties his lowest career round at the Open – he finished the 2021 edition at Royal St. George's with that same score. 9. Both of this week's defending champions, one of trophy and the other of course, will advance to the weekend. Xander Schauffele (-2), the 2024 Open Champion, will play the weekend in a major for the 15th consecutive time after making four birdies on the back nine. Shane Lowry, the 2019 Open champion at Royal Portrush, squeaked in with one shot to spare despite back-to-back doubles Friday on 11 and 12. Lowry was assessed a two-stroke penalty on No. 12 after it was determined a practice swing inadvertently moved his ball. Jordan Spieth made it as well, extending the longest active cuts made streak at the Open to 12. Fellow Texas Longhorn Justin Leonard is in on the number, playing the weekend at an Open for the first time in a dozen years. Phil Mickelson (22nd made cut), Lee Westwood (22) and Sergio Garcia (21) are all in, too. 10. The players in the afternoon/morning draw generated a 36-hole total score about 1.3 strokes better than their counterparts who went out early-late. Of the 70 players to advance to the weekend, 39 came from the easier p.m./a.m. side. Since 1970, 89 percent of Open winners have been within four strokes of the lead after 36 holes. There is, however, a very recent exception to that – Schauffele was six back at the halfway point a year ago at Royal Troon. If you are looking for a different cut-off point on the leaderboard, 44 of the previous 47 men's major winners have been T9 or better entering the third round.
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Superb Scottie Scheffler posts career-lowest major round to surge into ominous Open lead
If Scottie Scheffler is still wrestling with just why he wants to win the Open Championship, he's doing a remarkable job of hiding it. Three days after his extensive, existential rumination on the fleeting fulfilment of success, the world No. 1 ripped through the Royal Portrush course on Friday with the lowest major round of his career to take a one shot lead into the weekend in Northern Ireland. Eight birdies lifted the American to a seven-under 64 round, eclipsing the 65 he shot en route to his third major crown at the PGA Championship in May. Mere inches denied him from going one better, as his putted effort for a third consecutive birdie at the final hole pulled up agonizingly short. Already at 10-under par overall, it's an ominous sign for his competitors for the pre-tournament favorite to look so at ease in a tournament he has, by his sky-high standards, typically found harder to bend to his will. It remains the sole event in which Scheffler has yet to record a top-five finish, with just two of the 29-year-old's 15 top-10 major finishes coming at the game's oldest tournament. Yet, even wildly fluctuating weather doesn't seem to be stopping him from figuring it all out on his fifth Open start. 'We get to the first hole, it's still sunny. Then all of a sudden, you look around and it's super dark and it starts pouring rain. You're like, 'Boy, I wonder how long this is going to last,'' Scheffler told reporters on his return to the clubhouse. 'Fortunately, it didn't pour the whole time. We only had maybe four or five holes where it was really coming down, and I was able to take advantage of the holes where we had some good weather.' England's Matt Fitzpatrick sits within touching distance after shooting 66, a run of four straight birdies after the turn, the latest sign of a return to his best play. The 30-year-old clinched the US Open in 2022 but, since last winning an event in October 2023, has endured a dip in form that cratered, with him experiencing the 'lowest' feeling of his career after missing the cut with rounds of 78 and 72 at The Players Championship in March. Yet a tied-eighth finish at the US Open hinted that something was clicking, with the world No. 59 now full of belief that he can take the challenge to Scheffler. 'I wouldn't say I necessarily feel as much pressure … He's going to have the expectation to go out and dominate,' Fitzpatrick said. 'He's an exceptional player. He's World No. 1, and we're seeing Tiger-like stuff. I think the pressure is for him to win the golf tournament. For me, obviously, I hope I'm going to have some more home support than him, but it's an exciting position for me to be in, given where I was earlier this year.' American Brian Harman and China's Haotong Li lead the chasing pack, the pair shooting 65 and 67 respectively to head into the weekend one stroke back. Harman posted an identical second round en route to a commanding six shot victory at Royal Liverpool two years ago, when his love of hunting became a staple topic of press conferences and a source of controversy for some British tabloids. 'I was curious why everyone was asking so many questions about it,' he reflected after his bogey-free Friday. 'I didn't realize that everyone was so upset about it. It's a hill I'll die on. I'll sleep like a baby tonight.' Li may not boast the major-winning pedigree of his American counterpart, but the world No. 111 has history at The Open. The four-time European Tour winner fired a stunning closing 63 at Royal Birkdale in 2017 to climb to third and register the best ever finish by a Chinese golfer at a men's major. It's a source of confidence to a player that doesn't seem lacking in it, with Li once owning a wedge inscribed with the words, 'Haotong is the most handsome man in China.' 'I took an image [of the club] for Phil Mickelson, texted him, and he goes, 'Shame for your country.' It was fun,' Li told reporters. 'I think if I play my best, I can compete with anyone,' he added. Harman and Li sit three shots ahead of a five-strong group level at five-under par overall with American duo Chris Gotterup and Harris English, Scotland's Robert MacIntyre, England's Tyrrell Hatton and Denmark's Rasmus Højgaard. Home hero Rory McIlroy overcame struggles off the tee to shoot 69, a one-stroke improvement on his up-and-down opening round that leaves him with work to do if he is to secure what would be a storybook sixth career major. 'I've been somewhat close to my best over the first two days in little bits here and there,' said McIlroy, seven shots adrift from Scheffler. 'I'm going to need to have it all under control and have it all firing over the weekend to make a run.' The 36-year-old is at three-under par overall, safely clear of a cut line that he tearfully fell short of when the major returned to Royal Portrush for the first time in 68 years in 2019. Two-time US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau had looked destined to meet the same fate after toiling to a first round seven-over 78, only to follow it up with a stunning 65 to soar to one-over par overall, right on the cut mark. The American has historically found it more difficult to adapt his big-hitting game to the links courses across the pond, with the Open the only major he has yet to record a top-five finish in, yet DeChambeau looked in complete control as he made a 13-stroke improvement. 'I woke up this morning and I said, 'You know what, I can't give up,'' the American said. 'My dad always told me never to give up, to keep going, and that's what I did today. I was proud of the way I fought back, really persevered through some emotionally difficult moments, and to hold myself together and not get pissed and slam clubs and throw things and all that like I wanted to.' Yet plenty of big names will be departing the Causeway Coast prematurely, with 2021 victor Collin Morikawa, 2022 champion Cameron Smith and five-time major winner Brooks Koepka all falling well short of making the weekend.
