Lewis Hamilton has not been on a Formula 1 podium after a Grand Prix for twelve Grands Prix, or 238 days. In the meantime, the record world champion of the premier class endured the worst start to the season of his highly decorated F1 career and announced his move to Ferrari.
In Barcelona, he was finally able to celebrate a top-three result in Formula 1 on the podium again. After Mercedes seemed to have made a breakthrough in Canada, Hamilton was able to get the most out of his car this time. “It was a good, solid weekend. I have to thank the team, who trained so hard and did such a great job,” he said, praising his Mercedes mechanics and engineers after the race.
Hamilton disadvantaged? Wolff: conspiracy theorist without brains
In recent weeks, Hamilton has had a streak of bad luck. On the one hand, he was often defeated by his teammate, and on the other hand, the strategy did not play into his hands on several occasions. Before the At the Spanish GP, fuelled by an ominous email, there were even rumours that Hamilton was being discriminated against within the team.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff cited the Formula 1 race in Barcelona as proof that these allegations were unfounded and fired back at the critics. “I have no respect for these conspiracy theorists because they have no brains,” said Wolff. “We want a car that wins races and championships and anyone who doesn’t understand that should watch another sport,” the Austrian continued.
Regarding Hamilton, he admitted that the series world champion had not always received the ideal strategy in recent months: “It’s good to see that he had another great weekend. Because it’s been a while since he was on the right side and the strategy paid off for him. That’s why we’re happy for him with this podium.”
Soft tyres beat hard: Lewis Hamilton on the right strategy
On his way to third place, a strategic decision worked in his favor. Mercedes had put the hard tire on George Russell in the last stint, only to realize that it did not perform well. In Hamilton’s case, the soft tire was the better decision.
“It was the plan from the beginning not to use the hard tyre today. That’s why I completed the race on soft-medium-soft,” claimed Hamilton. Wolff contradicted him: “We were convinced that the hard was the right choice.” A false belief, as was evident from Russell’s poor pace in the last stint. The hard tyre slipped a lot, the soft was the better choice and Russell ultimately had no chance in the duel for P3 against his current team-mate.
But Hamilton didn’t have to risk it. The Brit actually started ahead of Russell. But unlike his compatriot, who took the lead from P4, Hamilton went back. “Just like Lando, we had a very bad start and lost ground to the Ferraris. So it was a bit of a fight to get back,” he explained the starting phase.
Hamilton after Spain podium: Qualifying and race finally work
During the race, Hamilton had to assert himself against Carlos Sainz twice, once with a somewhat controversial maneuver that the Spaniard said was worthy of punishment. However, the stewards did not see this as an offense.
Hamilton hopes that the good weekend in Spain will lay the foundation for the rest of the Formula 1 season and that this one podium finish will not be the only result. “If I could be more consistent in qualifying, like I was this weekend, then that will make Sunday so much easier. My Saturdays at the last 15 Grands Prix have been so bad. It was good to have another good weekend.”