Lewis Hamilton Elated After Finishing Third in Australian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton said he was proud to take third place after wringing 'every last ounce of pace out of the car'
Lewis Hamilton showed his class as world champion by keeping a cool head and finishing third despite starting from 18th on the grid with his troublesome McLaren-Mercedes. Victory was never on the cards given the McLaren's struggles all week, but Hamilton described the race as one of his finest and most challenging.
"We scored way more points than we could have realistically expected," he said. "I was looking to try and get one point, so to get six is a great achievement. It was one of the better races I've driven, simply because of the circumstances and the way the car is, which is damn hard to drive. I did enjoy it because it was a challenge and there were so many unknowns."
It also gave McLaren hope that respectability, if not more, can be salvaged from a season that seems to promise so little. "We've definitely not forgotten how to win: our strategy was perfect and the team did a fantastic job," he added. "Considering the package we've got, I wrung every last ounce of pace out of the car and absolutely raced my heart out – I'm so satisfied. It is a good foundation to start the championship.
"Every point is welcome. I feel really proud that I was able to bring the car home. I've had some serious challenges over the years and this has to be one of the biggest so far. Talking of challenges, my heartfelt congratulations to Jenson [Button] – he's driven brilliantly all weekend and both he and his team really deserve this success."
Hamilton made five places on the opening lap. By lap 11 he was eighth, but the decision to use the softer tires and run a light load of fuel in order to gain a performance advantage meant an early stop to refuel and change tyres. Rejoining in 15th place, Hamilton began to overhaul his rivals once again despite the McLaren continuing to be as difficult to drive as it had been during the two days of practice.
A second scheduled stop on lap 43 saw him drop from fifth to 10th but Hamilton continued his relentless attack, moving into sixth place with three laps to go. The collision between Sebastian Vettel and Robert Kubica elevated Hamilton to fourth, behind Jarno Trulli. Just after the race came under the control of the safety car, the Italian ran wide and Hamilton overtook the Toyota. Trulli eventually rejoined and reclaimed third place before joining the Brawn drivers on the podium.
Overtaking is not permitted when the race is under the safety car. The stewards later ruled that Hamilton's move had been completed when the Toyota had all four wheels on the grass and was therefore not officially on the race track. Trulli received a 25-second penalty for passing Hamilton and dropped from third to 10th. Hamilton was awarded six points for third place.
It was only the fourth time that Hamilton had started a grand prix outside the front two rows. The race was seen as a test of character as Hamilton, noted in the past for impetuosity when not running at the front, coped with the frustration of fighting through the field with a car which was inconsistent and nothing like the McLaren that had taken him to the title last year. The fact that Hamilton did not get to stand on the podium was a minor detail outweighed by the bonus of six points on a day when neither Ferrari driver scored any.
"We hoped that he'd have a steady race and that some of the other drivers would have trouble on their option [softer] tires at the end, as indeed they did," said Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren's chief executive officer. "To be frank about it, we'd have been delighted to get any points this weekend and I think the team has really rallied round and made some progress. We haven't made enough progress – we've been very open about that – and we're not as competitive as anyone would expect us to be or as we would expect ourselves to be. It's character-building stuff and it was an opportunity for Lewis to show what a fantastic racing driver he is and he did just that for the team and for everyone that was watching him today.'
"We scored way more points than we could have realistically expected," he said. "I was looking to try and get one point, so to get six is a great achievement. It was one of the better races I've driven, simply because of the circumstances and the way the car is, which is damn hard to drive. I did enjoy it because it was a challenge and there were so many unknowns."
It also gave McLaren hope that respectability, if not more, can be salvaged from a season that seems to promise so little. "We've definitely not forgotten how to win: our strategy was perfect and the team did a fantastic job," he added. "Considering the package we've got, I wrung every last ounce of pace out of the car and absolutely raced my heart out – I'm so satisfied. It is a good foundation to start the championship.
"Every point is welcome. I feel really proud that I was able to bring the car home. I've had some serious challenges over the years and this has to be one of the biggest so far. Talking of challenges, my heartfelt congratulations to Jenson [Button] – he's driven brilliantly all weekend and both he and his team really deserve this success."
Hamilton made five places on the opening lap. By lap 11 he was eighth, but the decision to use the softer tires and run a light load of fuel in order to gain a performance advantage meant an early stop to refuel and change tyres. Rejoining in 15th place, Hamilton began to overhaul his rivals once again despite the McLaren continuing to be as difficult to drive as it had been during the two days of practice.
A second scheduled stop on lap 43 saw him drop from fifth to 10th but Hamilton continued his relentless attack, moving into sixth place with three laps to go. The collision between Sebastian Vettel and Robert Kubica elevated Hamilton to fourth, behind Jarno Trulli. Just after the race came under the control of the safety car, the Italian ran wide and Hamilton overtook the Toyota. Trulli eventually rejoined and reclaimed third place before joining the Brawn drivers on the podium.
Overtaking is not permitted when the race is under the safety car. The stewards later ruled that Hamilton's move had been completed when the Toyota had all four wheels on the grass and was therefore not officially on the race track. Trulli received a 25-second penalty for passing Hamilton and dropped from third to 10th. Hamilton was awarded six points for third place.
It was only the fourth time that Hamilton had started a grand prix outside the front two rows. The race was seen as a test of character as Hamilton, noted in the past for impetuosity when not running at the front, coped with the frustration of fighting through the field with a car which was inconsistent and nothing like the McLaren that had taken him to the title last year. The fact that Hamilton did not get to stand on the podium was a minor detail outweighed by the bonus of six points on a day when neither Ferrari driver scored any.
"We hoped that he'd have a steady race and that some of the other drivers would have trouble on their option [softer] tires at the end, as indeed they did," said Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren's chief executive officer. "To be frank about it, we'd have been delighted to get any points this weekend and I think the team has really rallied round and made some progress. We haven't made enough progress – we've been very open about that – and we're not as competitive as anyone would expect us to be or as we would expect ourselves to be. It's character-building stuff and it was an opportunity for Lewis to show what a fantastic racing driver he is and he did just that for the team and for everyone that was watching him today.'
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