In their youth, Hülkenberg and Max played for the same team.

      Nico Hülkenberg made his Formula 1 debut in 2010, since then he has changed many teams and has now become an Audi driver. However, he has never collaborated with either Red Bull Racing or Toro Rosso, but that doesn't mean that he and Max Verstappen have never raced for the same team. They did, but at different times.

      They have a long-standing acquaintance that began many years ago when the future four-time world champion was still very young.

      In his youth, Nico was a driver for the Dutch karting team CRG and together with it won several titles in the national championships of Germany and Italy, and a few years later, Max also became a driver for that same team, achieving considerable success at the international level.

      However, it is also worth noting that Emmerich am Rhein, Hülkenberg's hometown, is located right at the border with the Netherlands, and during his karting days, Nico constantly participated in competitions held at Dutch kart tracks, which is why he still feels a strong attachment to that country today.

      "I have strong ties to the Netherlands, which have lasted many years, as they were formed back when my racing career was just starting," Nico, now racing for Audi F1, shared in an interview with RacingNews365. "You could say that it always stays with me; I definitely feel that attachment."

      It is also worth mentioning that a year ago, it was Verstappen who was the first to congratulate Hülkenberg when he finally made it to the podium for the first time in all his years in Formula 1, finishing third in the British Grand Prix.

      "He was the first to come up to me when I got out of the car," Nico recounted after that memorable race. "We've been friends since our karting days when we were both teenagers, and we have great respect for each other."