Nico Hulkenberg has evaluated Max Verstappen's pledge regarding the length of his own F1 career. Earlier this year, Verstappen asserted he was passed the halfway point of his stint in F1 with 10 seasons now under his belt, having long declared his desire to try other racing adventures before hanging up his helmet. Hulkenberg, 37, is entering his 12th F1 season this year and joins the Stake squad ahead of its transition to Audi in 2026. When Hulkenberg was Verstappen's current age, he was entering the fourth season of his F1 career and just over 100 career points to his name - a stark contrast to the Dutchman's four titles already in hand. Hulkenberg spoke to RacingNews365 about Verstappen's early exit prospect and was asked if he ever felt a similar way to the Red Bull driver's current mindset earlier in his career. “It can move, it can change,” Hulkenberg stated. “It's obviously [about] feelings and emotions. It's a lot of things, a lot of factors playing into that. “Max is in a very different situation and a different career to me. He's a four-time world champion fresh from the bakery.” Hulkenberg voiced the reality of the scenario of a driver wishing for a comeback to F1 having previously felt assured they were content with departing the grid. “But you never know. We’ve had so many champions that retire and then they feel after two years - ‘actually, I'm missing something',” Hulkenberg said. “Leaving F1 leaves a big hole in a way, because you experience things here you don't get in the outside life, in a normal life. “Saying these things is one thing, and then what actually happens can be a different thing.”
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