Hülkenberg and Renault started the season well with a 7th and two 6th places in the first 3 races. The first race in Australia with Sainz finishing in 10th, marked the first double points finish for Renault in F1 since the 2011 Turkish Grand Prix. At the fourth race of the season in Baku, Hülkenberg was handed a 5 place grid penalty for changing his damaged gearbox. He qualified 9th and would start 14th. This meant the end of his streak of starting the last 6 races 7th on the grid. He had made his way up to 5th place by lap 10, when he lost the rear of his car on lap 10, and clattered the wall with his left rear tyre and retired with suspension damage, ending his 5 race point-scoring streak. It was second time in two years that he had retired from a top 6 position in Baku from an unforced error.