The German was due to start from 16th after a poor qualifying performance after Alpine decided to start Esteban Ocon from the pit lane in the sprint and grand prix.

Hulkenberg’s fate finished 12th in the sprint shootout, but suffered severe wear on the rear wheel 17 laps into the race and finished 15th.

Haas decided to sacrifice Hulkenberg’s grid position to make changes to the car, breaking the qualifying conditions that had been present at the start of Friday’s qualifying session.

“I don’t think there was a problem (with the car), it was just that after the safety car there was some serious graininess, three or four laps, and then my tire was completely hit,” Hulkenberg explained after the sprint.

“I haven’t had a lot of work and battles. So it’s just falling like a rock, it needs to be watched, understood, analyzed, and at the moment it’s a bit of a question mark.

“We expected some graininess, but certainly not to this degree and this level. So it’s not just no traction, it’s just no grip anywhere.

“On a track like here, it’s obviously very rough and tricky, and it feels very exposed.”

Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team

Photography: Andy Horn / motorsport pictures

Assuming both cars reach the exit of the pit lane before the five-minute warning at the start of the race, Hulkenberg will still be behind Ocon due to their respective grid positions in qualifying.

Hulkenberg’s teammate Kevin Magnussen also reported graininess, but to a much lesser extent in his car as he moved up to 11th during the sprint.

Magnussen thought he could have finished in the top eight with the speed he was driving the VF-23.

“I also have graininess, but definitely less,” explains the Dane. “They certainly do grain, especially the rear tyres, so that’s some knowledge for tomorrow to see if we can manage better or change tactics, but it’s something we’ll look at now, with the data.

“So far we haven’t had a lot of data on the tires and the long runs. So it’s been a good meeting. I think we’ve got a good pace.

“Tomorrow I got a bit behind the start because of an electrical issue in qualifying, but the pace was good enough today to fight for a top eight. Hopefully we can get into the standings tomorrow.”