The winner of the British Grand Prix finished the race in third position behind the two McLarens, obtaining his third podium of the season and demonstrating the solidity of Mercedes.
The papaya team scored its first one-two since the 2021 Italian GP and Hamilton said he was really happy to see his “old family” back in front of everyone, then underlining the great work done by his team during the race.
“We didn’t have the pace of the McLarens and maybe not even the Red Bulls, but we managed to hold on at the start of the race and it was really tough to make the tyres last long enough, then there was that very tough battle at the end, a bit thorny in some places, but that’s racing.”
Hamilton, in fact, was one of the protagonists of the Hungarian GP due to a long battle with Max Verstappen. The duel between the two ended with a contact in turn 1 that had no consequences for the Mercedes driver, while it made the Dutchman lose not only the possibility of reaching the podium, but also the fourth place, conquered by Leclerc, who was able to take advantage of the contact between the two to pass the reigning world champion.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, contact with Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Speaking about the fight with Verstappen, Hamilton said: “The battle was not a derby, if you look at the pace with which they closed the gap in some corners. I had to laugh because it was impossible to keep up with him, especially in the last sector: he was very strong.”
“I saw him coming from very far away and he managed to brake very late, he threw himself on the inside, I remained stationary and he hit me on the tyre, I think it was a racing accident”.
The seven-time world champion was delighted with Oscar Piastri’s first career win, saying the Australian rider “is doing a fantastic job, he’s been very consistent since he came here, it was just a matter of time before he got a win. He had a fantastic pace right from the start and I’m happy for him and his family.”
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