Saudi Arabia GP: Hulkenberg's 2054 Moon GP meme after named as Vettel's sub goes viral

After Baharain, now Aston Martin's Sebastian Vettel will miss this weekend's Saudi Arabia Grand Prix after failing to recover from Covid-19, with Nico Hulkenberg set to drive in his place once again.

Four-time world champion Vettel sat out last week's season opener after testing positive for coronavirus, with fellow German Hulkenberg taking his spot on the grid.

Following the announcement, Hulkenberg, who finished 17th in Bahrain in a race won by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, sparked a massive social media frenzy with a meme he shared on his personal Twitter account.

Captioned, "Life as a super-sub... another weekend... another drive," the meme had a photograph of an old Nico Hulkenberg as a replacement for Emmo Fittipaldi Jr. for the 2054 Moon Grand Prix.

15-year-old Emmo Fittipaldi Jr, son of the two-time Formula 1 World Champion and Indy 500 winner Emerson, is part of the Sauber Academy and recently signed for Van Amersfoort Racing to race in Danish F4 this year.

Hulkenberg's meme became an instant hit among F1 fans and followers of the Aston Martin team. Here's a look at what a few netizens had to say:

The German is no stranger to late substitute calls, having filled in for Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll with Racing Point in 2020. However, his latest substitute appearance has come with the asterisk of new regulations and car changes that have seemingly opened up the drivers' championship.

"It was interesting. It was difficult, very difficult to be honest, first time racing obviously in a long, long time," Hulkenberg told the official F1 website, reflecting on the season opener.

"There are so many things happening in the race, it's so dynamic, the car balance is changing, the fuel load is changing, so it's difficult to keep up with all these changes and stay on top of things," Hulkenberg added.

Meanwhile, Aston Martin expects 34-year-old Vettel to be fit for the third round of the campaign in Australia on April 10.

"Nico Hulkenberg will practise, qualify and race alongside Lance Stroll. Despite the lack of mileage in the Aston Martin R22, Nico coped well in Bahrain, and we are sure he will do likewise in Jeddah. We expect Sebastian Vettel to be fit for the Australian Grand Prix," a statement from the British team read.

The Jeddah Corniche street race will host the second race of the 2022 season, with Ferrari looking to build on a strong start. The Italian giants recorded a one-two in Baharain, with Carlos Sainz finishing behind race-winning teammate Leclerc.

Ferrari ended the second-longest victory drought in their illustrious history at 45 races to endorse their credentials as title contenders. Neither reigning world champion Max Verstappen nor Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez finished the race, while Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and George Russell placed third and fourth.