BARCELONA, Spain, CMC – Reigning World champion, Lewis Hamilton, stormed to a handsome victory in yesterday’s Spanish Grand Prix, leading from pole to dominate at the Circuit de Catalunya.
The 33-year-old, without a win prior to the last Grand Prix in Baku, took the chequered flag a whopping 20 seconds ahead of teammate Valtteri Bottas, to post a record-breaking 41st win from pole and also open up a 17-point lead in the driver’s championship.
Nemesis Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari could only muster fourth spot while Red Bull’s exciting Dutchman Max Verstappen completed the podium positions. “You can only take it one race at a time. This weekend, we got ourselves on the right path. The team did an exceptional job. I didn’t know what the pace would be,” Hamilton said afterwards.
“I was much happier with the car. I wouldn’t say I had perfect synergy, but almost. I think that showed in my face [as he celebrated after].
“I’m really happy. I said I wanted to come and win in the way that I have won. Coming across the line, I’m happy I did it in the way I planned to.”
Starting on pole for the first time since the season-opener in Melbourne, Hamilton avoided the melee caused by Haas driver Romain Grosjean’s crash on the opening lap, to take control of the race.
He was helped by few incidents as Vettel struggled for tyre life and was forced into a second pit stop which saw him drop from second to fourth, and Kimi Raikkonen also of Ferrari was forced to retire with engine failure on lap 24, while in second spot.
Despite having notched his second consecutive win, Hamilton remained unconvinced it marked the start of a turnaround.
“It’s a bit early to say, but I would like to hope it could be part of the turning point. Race by race, we can understand the tyres more, which is a battle for everyone,” he noted.
“But we could easily go to the next race and struggle and be nowhere. It’s too early to say. After five races, we have a much better understanding of the car, of what we need to do to get the car working.
“We go to Monaco on a high note, but we know we have a long mountain to climb and a lot of work to do. It’s important we continue to push and work as hard as we have been.”
Hamilton’s has close connections to the Caribbean. His paternal grandparents are Grenadian and he was also honoured by the small island during its 2008 independence celebrations.
