Hamilton surprised by his winning strategy in Mexico

Lewis Hamilton won the Mexican GP after his start to the race was nightmarish. The pilot Mercedes started in 3rd place and stuck with Max Verstappen (Red Bull) in the first round and thus lost several positions in the ranking. The Briton subsequently took advantage of his team's offensive strategy by stopping prematurely to attempt a long stint on hard tires.

“It’s a superb result that I dedicate to my team, started the ten-time winner this season. I got off to a very good start, taking advantage of Charles (Leclerc's) aspiration. I thought my race was over after my big contact with Max. It was a tough race for us, but we managed to come back. My car was damaged at the start and my second stint was really long. It was a race that I dreamed of winning and I want to remain humble after this result because it was the strategy that allowed me to win. »

Lewis Hamilton expressed concern on his radio about Mercedes' choice to stop him so early, the five-time champion fearing being caught by Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) in the last laps.

“We had even planned to stop even earlier, but it motivated me to be chased by Seb because I had to keep a gap of 2 seconds. I was worried about maintaining the advantage by preserving my tires with a damaged car. It was hard but we did it. My approach will remain the same for next week in Austin, a circuit where I am doing well”, recalled the Mercedes driver.

Lewis Hamilton will only need to score 4 points to celebrate his 6th world title next weekend at the US GP.

Discover the analysis of the Mexican GP carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2240 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday in digital version on all platforms, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.