Lewis Hamilton Deflects the Credit After Triumph in Hungary
The British driver praised McLaren's preparations and teamwork after his Hungaroring triumph
Lewis Hamilton said he and McLaren had never given up hope before winning yesterday's Hungarian grand prix, their first victory since China in October 2008. The British driver, whose car had underperformed all season until yesterday, came from fourth on the grid to win, helped by Fernando Alonso, the early leader, being eliminated when a tire flew off his Renault.
"It's an incredible feeling to be back here after what feels such a long time away and with such a struggle with me and my team," said Hamilton, pictured left. "I'm just so proud of the guys, as I go into the factory and I see how hard everyone is pushing. Everyone wants to win just as much as I do.
"They have never given up, which is something very rare to see in such a large group of people. I am very proud of them. We didn't expect to win this weekend. Undoubtedly we have caught up quite a bit but we never felt we had the pace to win. But the car felt fantastic and it is incredibly special to get back up here, not only on the podium, but to get a win. It's amazing."
Hamilton, the reigning world champion, has suffered a deeply frustrating season with a car which, until now, has been woefully off the pace. The Briton's new competitiveness was confirmed on lap one when he accelerated past Mark Webber, who finished third in his Red Bull, a place behind Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.
"We have made some serious improvements and now it is a much better balanced car," Hamilton said. "Even though we had fantastic pace today it could have gone either way. The wind direction maybe could have changed and perhaps it would have suited the Ferrari or the Red Bull better than us. But everything just sort of fell into place today... For sure, we hope that we can compete for more podiums but we still have work to do. We have just got to keep pushing."
It was not such a good day for Jenson Button, whose championship lead was cut to 18½ points after he finished a distant seventh. Button and Brawn GP had been hoping to return to form after two disappointing races. "Today, after four laps, my tires were destroyed," lamented Button, who started from eighth on the grid. "I just couldn't keep up with the cars in front. The plan was to stay with them and then, because I had more fuel on board, go a lot longer and make up places. But I don't know why we had the problem with the tires. I don't think we can blame the weather today.
"You could say that McLaren and Ferrari have improved but the fact is that our car is not what it was to drive two or three races ago. There is obviously an issue and we need to solve it. The only positive for us is that [Sebastian] Vettel didn't score points and Webber only finished third. We were helped in that respect by McLaren and Kimi Raikkonen finishing second for Ferrari."
Renault were suspended from the next race in Spain after Alonso had left the pits with an insecure front wheel that fell off on the next lap. Renault have appealed against the decision.
Race report, page 2
"It's an incredible feeling to be back here after what feels such a long time away and with such a struggle with me and my team," said Hamilton, pictured left. "I'm just so proud of the guys, as I go into the factory and I see how hard everyone is pushing. Everyone wants to win just as much as I do.
"They have never given up, which is something very rare to see in such a large group of people. I am very proud of them. We didn't expect to win this weekend. Undoubtedly we have caught up quite a bit but we never felt we had the pace to win. But the car felt fantastic and it is incredibly special to get back up here, not only on the podium, but to get a win. It's amazing."
Hamilton, the reigning world champion, has suffered a deeply frustrating season with a car which, until now, has been woefully off the pace. The Briton's new competitiveness was confirmed on lap one when he accelerated past Mark Webber, who finished third in his Red Bull, a place behind Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.
"We have made some serious improvements and now it is a much better balanced car," Hamilton said. "Even though we had fantastic pace today it could have gone either way. The wind direction maybe could have changed and perhaps it would have suited the Ferrari or the Red Bull better than us. But everything just sort of fell into place today... For sure, we hope that we can compete for more podiums but we still have work to do. We have just got to keep pushing."
It was not such a good day for Jenson Button, whose championship lead was cut to 18½ points after he finished a distant seventh. Button and Brawn GP had been hoping to return to form after two disappointing races. "Today, after four laps, my tires were destroyed," lamented Button, who started from eighth on the grid. "I just couldn't keep up with the cars in front. The plan was to stay with them and then, because I had more fuel on board, go a lot longer and make up places. But I don't know why we had the problem with the tires. I don't think we can blame the weather today.
"You could say that McLaren and Ferrari have improved but the fact is that our car is not what it was to drive two or three races ago. There is obviously an issue and we need to solve it. The only positive for us is that [Sebastian] Vettel didn't score points and Webber only finished third. We were helped in that respect by McLaren and Kimi Raikkonen finishing second for Ferrari."
Renault were suspended from the next race in Spain after Alonso had left the pits with an insecure front wheel that fell off on the next lap. Renault have appealed against the decision.
Race report, page 2
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