A great performance for Hamilton

The penalty imposed on Lewis Hamilton will have completely destroyed the British Grand Prix of Spain. His team made a mistake in Q3 by sending the MP4-27 off with insufficient fuel. After taking pole five tenths ahead of Pastor Maldonado (Williams), the 2008 world champion had to start from the back of the grid and move up the positions in the peloton. At the cost of an aggressive strategy with only two stops compared to three for most of his rivals, the driver McLaren signs an impressive eighth position just behind Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) and in front of his teammate Jenson Button who has never been able to find the right balance with his car this week-end. The penalized pole sitter could perhaps even have claimed a better place if his team had not yet made him lose time in the pits during his second stop.

Lewis Hamilton remains satisfied with his race where he limits the damage by especially gaining the upper hand over his teammate Jenson Button after often being compared negatively with him last year. “I am proud of my performance and that of the team”, comments the McLaren driver. “They have improved the pit stops after the recent complications. I think this result was the best I could get. I was the only driver to make two stops and I am delighted that this strategy worked. Some say my driving style is aggressive, but my last stint on hard tires lasted 31 laps. I proved that I was able to keep my erasers. I gave everything I had as I said I would before the race. This race was all about conserving rubber. I can't complain about it since I remain only eight points off the lead in the Championship. The team worked hard and my car is fast. So I think we'll be in a good position when things go well and that won't take too long to come. I congratulate Pastor (Maldonado) and everyone at Williams because it’s a great result for them. »

Discover the analysis of the Spanish Grand Prix carried out by our special correspondents in the next issue of AUTOhebdo, available from Tuesday in digital version and from Wednesday on newsstands.