Portuguese Grand Prix – A difficult race for Lewis Hamilton
97th victory for Lewis Hamilton, but not the easiest. Second on the grid, he found himself third after the restart. He then worked his way up to a comfortable win.
It is becoming a habit with always the same outcome in the end: throughout the race, we could hear Lewis Hamilton speak in a breathless voice, complaining about the strong degradation of his tires. But in the end, the Briton crossed the checkered flag, well ahead, greatly helped by the pit stops of Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas, reduced to chasing the scraps of the fastest lap point in the race.
At the moment of stepping up to the post-race microphone, he stated: “It was a tough race, both physically and mentally. There was a lot of wind, which disrupted the car.”
Never easy to consume a Red Bull
However, it is clear that the seven-time world champion had to push his talent to make up for a complicated start to the race. He did not manage to outdo his teammate at the start. He was even caught off guard during the restart, which allowed Max Verstappen to overtake him: “I was not happy after the restart.”
But once again, he did not panic, serene about the performance of his car and his driving skills. Like a hungry wolf, he managed to regain his position at the first mistake of the Dutchman: “Max made a mistake and I knew it was my chance to pass him.” He then just had to do the same with his teammate, which did not pose a particular difficulty. Winning is one thing, but winning like this is another! It’s not easy to overtake a Red Bull. It feels really good.
The hardest part was done and all that was left was to bring the Mercedes to the end of the race, with the valuable 25 points of victory.
