LEWIS GOES ON THE CHARGE IN SPAIN
Trick tactics help Mercedes star secure glory
Formula 1 World champion Lewis Hamilton claimed his third win in four races in 2021 in last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix after beating rival Max Verstappen in a strategic battle.
The Barcelona race continued this year’s theme of the Mercedes and Red Bull team leaders having a tight fight for victory. But this one was resolved on the pitwall, with Hamilton beating long-time leader Verstappen via an extra pitstop.
Hamilton – who’d claimed his landmark 100th pole position the day before – led from the line but Verstappen ambushed him for the lead at turn one and led by
1.5 seconds at the end of the opening lap.
Hamilton though gradually hauled his foe in. Verstappen pitted first, on lap 24 of 66, but his stop was slow at 4.2s, his team boss Christian Horner explaining that Verstappen had “called himself in” which caught his team somewhat on the hop.
It looked therefore that Hamilton could pit and rejoin in first, but he instead stayed out for another five laps. He emerged from his stop 5.5s shy of Verstappen but quickly got onto his tail. However in the turbulence he was unable to make a challenge for the place.
The crucial twist awaited on lap 42, when Hamilton pitted for a second time. It left him with a 23s gap to close in as many laps, and it was soon clear he was well ahead of that target on his fresher tyres. He cruised past Verstappen DRS-assisted with six laps left. Verstappen then himself pitted again and took the fastest lap point.
Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas completed the podium. McLaren’s Brit Lando Norris finished eighth.
“I’m continuing to love this battle we are having,” Hamilton said. “As soon as we got passed in turn one, I was like, ‘OK, switch into a different mode’. I learned a lot about Max today, perhaps more than all the other races put together. Great, great teamwork from all of us. Coming back from 20-odd seconds wasn’t easy but it was the right one in the end.”
Results
1 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1h33m07.680s; 2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) +15.841s; 3 Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes); 4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari); 5 Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda); 6 Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren-Mercedes);
7 Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari); 8 Lando Norris (McLaren-Mercedes); 9 Esteban Ocon (AlpineRenault); 10 Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri-Honda). Championship: 1 Hamilton 94; 2 Verstappen 80; 3 Bottas 47; 4 Norris 41; 5 Leclerc 40; 6 Perez 32. Next race: Monaco Grand Prix, May 23