Lewis Hamilton says he felt comfortable enough throughout the Hungarian Grand Prix to manage the pace as he took the lead of the championship with a fifth win of 2016.
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Lewis Hamilton took command of the Formula One drivers’ race with a record fifth win at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The 31-year-old Briton, who is bidding to claim a third successive championship, led from start-to-finish at the Hungaroring after he passed pole-sitter Nico Rosberg on the opening lap.
At the Hungaroring, Hamilton again controlled the pace at the front, to such an extent he was warned over the radio to pick up his pace otherwise Rosberg would pit first at the second stop to ward off the challenge from Ricciardo.
Hamilton’s victory on Sunday was the 48th of his career, which puts him only three behind Alain Prost as the second most successful driver of all time in terms of wins.
“The race the start was everything”, he said. “If it is a double yellow flag, you have to be prepared to stop”, he said.
“This is a great result for the team – what a day”.
“We would have got close on the last run, with the yellow”, he said.
Hamilton, however, was able to speed up when needed and despite being held up when lapping Esteban Gutierrez near the end – and also locking up into Turn 12 – proved unbeatable.
Hamilton maintained his pace for most of the race with the gap extending to 4 seconds. That was it really.
“But of course, not possible to pass on this track”.
Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel finished fourth.
Yes, he made a mistake in qualifying at the European Grand Prix, but the defending champ was flawless in Canada, Great Britain and Hungary. “For sure the smile is back”, Ricciardo noted.
“I feel from Friday onwards until the last lap today, I got the most out of it, so I’m more pleased with that this weekend, to leave Sunday feeling happy again and knowing that I got everything I could out of the vehicle and package and it’s nice to be rewarded with champagne and a very nice trophy here”.
The Australian and his new Dutch stablemate seem to be set for a thrilling battle over the second half of the season, and if Red Bull continue their revival, the stakes may be a little higher than competing for the odd podium finish.
By lap 15, Hamilton was 2.5 seconds clear and the two Silver Arrows were striding away.
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg of Germany steers his vehicle during the Hungarian Formula One Grand Prix, at the Hungaroring racetrack, in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, July 24, 2016.
McLaren had their best qualifying result since renewing their engine partnership with Honda at the start of past year with Spaniard Alonso and Briton Jenson Button, who both had their first race wins in Hungary, in seventh and eighth.
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McLaren’s Fernando Alonso took seventh while his teammate Jenson Button endured a frustrating afternoon, dropping to last place due to a hydraulic problem before retiring with seven laps to go.
