Hulkenberg’s Audi deal includes lucrative points bonus

Jan.21 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg’s new contract with Audi is set to pay off handsomely as the German transitions with the team from Sauber into its full factory era.

According to Austria’s Osterreich newspaper, the 38-year-old is earning a reported and modest base salary of around EUR 5 million per season – but that is only part of the picture. His deal is said to include a sizeable performance bonus of EUR 50,000 for every world championship point scored.

The figures underline just how valuable consistency has become ahead of the 2026 regulation reset. Last season, Hulkenberg finished 11th in the drivers’ standings with 51 points. Under the reported structure, that alone would have translated into EUR 2.55 million in bonus payments.

One standout result was Silverstone, where Hulkenberg secured his first ever podium finish. That single result would have been worth an estimated EUR 750,000 on its own.

Audi boss Mattia Binotto has already warned that 2026 will be a learning year for the new works team, despite the eye-catching silver-and-red livery unveiled this week.

“It will be a very difficult season in 2026,” Binotto said. “As I’ve already said, we need to ski, but we’re still just snowplowing. We’ll have to learn because we’re not yet the best on the slopes.

“It will take time. We’ll do everything we can to progress step by step to reach our goal.”

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