Driver profile: Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkenberg waited patiently on the sidelines in 2011 as Force India's reserve driver and his reward was a race drive in 2012.

Similar in height, and in their down-to-earth characters, the battle between Hulkenberg and team-mate Paul di Resta, two promising rising stars in equal cars, was always expected to be one of the highlights of 2012 for discerning observers.

So far, Di Resta has had slightly the upper hand, out-qualifying and out-scoring the German.

In reality, though, the two have been close on performance, and it will be fascinating to watch Hulkenberg's progress as he builds some momentum through the season and shakes off the cobwebs of not racing for a year.