Nico Hulkenberg will not race for Williams in Formula 1 next season, the German driver and his team confirmed following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The 23-year-old Hulkenberg, who took his first career pole position in Brazil a week ago – the team's first in five years, announced this morning that he will leave the team.
"I heavily regret that," Hulkenberg said in a statement. "I would have been happy to stay with Williams. I want to thank the team for a great time and I wish Williams all the best for the future."
Hulkenberg's manager, Willi Weber, says he is in discussions with other F1 teams and is sure that Hulkenberg will have a race drive next season.
"I am negotiating with other teams," Weber said. "Nico will have his seat in F1 in 2011."
However, Hulkenberg's options appear to be limited. With Vitaly Petrov set to renew his deal with Renault, Force India and Lotus could be his only possible destinations. The other option is to spend a year as a reserve driver with another team before stepping up to a race seat in 2012.
Williams reportedly was looking to sign Hulkenberg to a multi-year deal that would have placed him with the HRT team for the 2011 season, which the German declined.