At Silverstone, Nico Hulkenberg surprised everyone by securing his first Formula 1 podium after 15 years competing in the World Championship. The German broke Carlos Sainz’s record. Here is the Top 10 list of drivers who had to wait the longest to step onto the podium.

Hope is the last thing to die, even in Formula 1.
What happened to Nico Hulkenberg at the British GP is the best testament to this.
The German driver has been racing in Formula 1 since 2010, making him the 3rd most experienced driver on track after Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.

Yet, either due to never having the chance to drive for teams like Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes, or Red Bull, or a bit of bad luck, before July 6, 2025, he had never stood on the podium.

An incredible drought for a driver who, in his only participation at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 with the Porsche 919 Hybrid equipped with Brembo braking components, managed to climb to the top step of the podium. On that occasion, Hulkenberg, who at the time raced in Formula 1 with Force India, shared the wheel with Nick Tandy and Earl Bamber.

Nico, who had made his Endurance debut just the month prior at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, was honored with crossing the finish line in front of 260,000 spectators that year.

With that victory in the French endurance marathon, he became the first active Formula 1 driver to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans since 1991, when Bertrand Gachot and Johnny Herbert teamed up with Volker Weidler to share driving duties in the Mazda 787B, also fitted with Brembo brakes.
With this result, Hulkenberg topped the leaderboard of drivers who had to compete in the most GPs before securing their first Formula 1 podium.

Below is the Top 10 of drivers who needed the most GPs to achieve this milestone

10th place – Felipe Massa: 57 GPs

The Brazilian debuted in Formula 1 in 2002 with Sauber and already at his second race, in Malaysia, showcased his talent by finishing 6th.

He improved with a 5th place in Spain, which he repeated in 2004 at Monaco GP. Massa came close to the podium finishing 4th at the 2004 Belgian GP, then repeated this at the 2005 Canadian GP.

These performances earned him a promotion to Ferrari, and finally, on May 7, 2006 at the Nürburgring, at the European GP, his 57th GP, he finished 3rd with the 248 F1 equipped with Brembo brakes.

9th place – Gianni Morbidelli: 60 GPs

After debuting at the 1990 Brazilian GP with Scuderia Italia, the Pesaro-born driver moved to Minardi but never scored points at a time when only the top six were awarded.

He scored his first points at the 1991 Australian GP, when Ferrari called him up to replace the dismissed Alain Prost.

In 1993 Morbidelli raced in the Italian Touring Car Championship but returned to F1 the following year driving for Footwork.

The highlight was at the 1995 Australian GP, his 60th GP: he finished 3rd, albeit two laps behind winner Damon Hill.

8th place – Esteban Ocon: 66 GPs

The Frenchman arrived in F1 not yet 20 years old in mid-2016 with Manor, finishing every one of his 9 races.

This consistency earned him a promotion to Force India, where in 2017 he secured two 5th places and two 6th places. Results dipped in 2018, and in 2019 he accepted the role of Mercedes’ third driver.

Fed up with being sidelined, Ocon moved to Renault in 2020 and at the Sakhir GP, despite qualifying 11th, he scored an unexpected 2nd place.

That was his 66th GP.

6th place (tie) – Johnny Herbert: 67 GPs

Like Hulkenberg, Herbert won the 24 Hours of Le Mans before reaching the F1 podium.

He debuted at the 1989 Brazilian GP and nearly podiumed: with Benetton using Brembo calipers, he was 4th just one second off 3rd.

Dropped mid-season, he returned in late 1990 with Lotus and was 4th three times in 1993 (Brazil, Donington, Silverstone). He ended his drought at the 1995 Spanish GP, his 67th GP, finishing 2nd behind Michael Schumacher in Benetton’s last 1-2 finish.

6th place (tie) – Pedro De La Rosa: 67 GPs

After honing his skills as a test driver, he debuted in F1 with Arrows in 1999, finishing 6th in his first race.

Beyond several 6th places, the Spaniard struggled to go higher until 2001 when, with Jaguar, he finished 5th at Monza.

Returning to a test role from 2003, he was called up by McLaren in 2006 to replace Juan Pablo Montoya, who left for NASCAR.

De La Rosa’s first podium came at his 67th GP in Hungary, finishing 2nd.

5th place – Jenson Button: 68 GPs

Not everyone is like Lewis Hamilton, who podiumed on debut. Fellow Brit Jenson Button took time to mature: he narrowly missed the podium at his 11th GP in 2000 in Germany with Williams.

With Renault taking over Benetton, he scored two 4th places.

Near misses continued with BAR until the 2004 Malaysian GP, his 68th GP, where he finished 3rd. This was the first of his 50 podiums, including 15 wins, 6 of which came in 2009 with Brawn GP equipped with Brembo brakes, winning the world title.

4th place – Mika Salo: 73 GPs

The Finn redeemed a career as a midfield driver with Lotus, Tyrrell, and Arrows in 1999, stepping in for Michael Schumacher to race six GPs with Ferrari’s Brembo-equipped F399.

Previously he had finished 4th with Arrows at Monaco GP 1998. At Hockenheim on August 1, 1999, Salo immediately leapt to 2nd and briefly led on lap 25, before yielding to teammate Eddie Irvine, who was in the championship hunt.

That 2nd place was his first podium in 73 GPs.

3rd place – Martin Brundle: 91 GPs

The Englishman held the record for a long time, largely due to the underperforming cars he drove early in his career.

Still, at the 1986 Australian GP with Tyrrell, he nearly pulled off a shock podium: 4th in a survival race, albeit lapped.

His stints with Zakspeed and Brabham were fruitless. The breakthrough came in 1992 with Benetton, where he scored 5 podiums.

The first was at his 91st GP in France, behind only the dominant Williams cars of the era.

2nd place – Carlos Sainz: 101 GPs

Brundle’s record stood for 27 years until Carlos Sainz surpassed it, paying his dues with nearly three seasons at Toro Rosso: three 6th places in the first two years, and a 4th at Singapore 2017.

He finished that year with Renault, but the podium eluded him.

He finally broke the curse at the penultimate GP of 2019 in Brazil with McLaren: notably, he couldn’t even set a qualifying time but climbed to 3rd during the race thanks to Hamilton’s penalty.

This was his 101st GP.

1st place – Nico Hulkenberg: 239 GPs

In 2010, the German debuted in F1 with Williams and secured pole in Brazil before the season ended.

In 2012 with Force India in Brazil, he led for 30 laps but finished 5th. He scored three 4th places between the Indian constructor and Sauber.

With Renault and Haas, frustration continued. No one imagined what would happen at Silverstone on July 6, 2025, with Sauber: qualifying second last, he was in the points by lap 3. When Verstappen spun at lap 21, Hulkenberg moved up to 4th and passed Lance Stroll on lap 34.

From that moment to the finish, Nico held 3rd place. His first podium at his 239th GP, but his second with Brembo brakes after the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans win.