Although the result owed as much to good fortune as it did to skill, the podium has at least lifted some of the pressure on the Brazilian's shoulders.
Autosport.com caught up with Piquet during testing at Jerez this week to talk about what difference Hockenheim has made for him.
Q. After a fantastic podium finish, it's back to hard work. How has testing gone?
Nelson Piquet: "It feels normal. It's like any other day of testing. Normally this is not the best time of the year to test, as it is really hot and we have the medium and soft tyres here so they don't last any distance. It's difficult for us. Sunday was good but Monday you wake up and nothing changed."
Q. What does the first podium finish mean for you?
NP: "Obviously I was a bit lucky on Sunday, but it's good to finish on the podium in my rookie year. Many drivers have not done that, but I want more. I also think we can do more, so it's good.
"At the end of the day, the numbers on paper that count are the points and the podiums. It doesn't matter if you are very lucky or unlucky; people just look at the numbers. So from that point of view it was good."
Q. Was it a relief after the difficult start to the year you've had?
NP: "Sort of, a little bit of a relief. I didn't do anything different and I just did what I knew how to do all the time. I was just a bit lucky in the race, and the car was good, the conditions were okay. I don't think it will change much.
"For people looking at numbers, yes, but the people who know me won't treat me different because I finished on the podium."
Q. Did you feel your performance this year before the podium was not up to expectation?
NP: "The performance is the same before and after. Each race I'm learning a bit more, but if the car broke down two laps to the end then nobody would have said anything. They would say Nelson hadn't improved and nothing would have changed, so it's a bit stupid to say things have changed because I was a bit lucky. Everyone thinks I've changed and become a good driver, but these things don't happen."
Q. Would you consider Germany to have been one of your best races? You were very strong in the last part of the race?
NP: "It was a very good stint. I was impressed with how good the car was, and how it was on soft tyres because the Ferrari couldn't catch me, so I was impressed. In a normal situation the soft tyres should have had a big degradation, the car would have had a lot of oversteer, and the Ferrari would have got close to me. So I was impressed with how the car handled in the race."
Q. Is it a good omen for the second part of the season?
NP: "The next race I am not expecting any podiums. It's still going to be very difficult and very tough. It's still going to be normal, with a difficult qualifying. It's not going to change much in the next race."
Q. How big is the gap from the Renault to the frontrunners?
NP: "Our gap is still big to them, but track to track it depends. Some tracks are more and some are less. If I can score points in Hungary I will be very happy."
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