It was back to business as usual for Lewis Hamilton in Montreal as he bounced back from his Monaco disappointment to score a dominant Formula One win on Sunday.
According to report in Foxsports.com, Hamilton led from the start, and with main rival Sebastian Vettel compromised by a first corner clash with Max Verstappen and wing damage that led to an early stop, he was never under any threat.
Hamilton finished 20 seconds in front of the rest of the field. Vettel finished second, and Vatteri Bottas was third.
But no one could come close to touching Hamilton, who one day earlier matched the late, legendary Aryton Senna’s F1 record for career poles by claiming his 65th.
This was a big day for Mercedes, as the team had worked hard to address the issues it has faced in recent races, and with Valtteri Bottas backing Hamilton up in the first one-two of the season, things could hardly have gone any better.
“It’s been an incredible weekend,” said Hamilton. “I couldn’t be happier. Firstly, for the team to have come away from Monaco, everyone kind scratching their heads but everyone wanting to work, to pull together, which we did.
“I don’t think in the five years I’ve been with the team that I’ve seen them pull so well together and really work towards the same cause, understand the car and then come here and deliver what we’ve delivered – a great blow to the Ferraris, I think, because Valtteri did a fantastic job to get a one-two – it’s our first one-two together – and it’s important points for the team.”
Rounding out the top five at Montreal were Kimi Raikkonen and Verstappen.
Hamilton pointed out that it was 10 years since he logged his maiden pole and win at the same venue.
“It’s kind of crazy to think that I had my first pole position and Grand Prix win here 10 years ago,” he said. “It felt great; it felt very reminiscent of 2007 in terms of how the race went. Once we did the restart, once I got past the pit straight, it was all under control from there. I had to manage the car, the tires, it’s a long race.
“When you’re out there on your own it feels very long. When you’ve got 35 laps to go, you think it’s a long way. (You are) just hoping that the car holds together, which it did.
Hamilton also praised the enthusiastic Montreal crowd.
“The crowd here … every year they turn up in their masses, and the energy from them is as close to the British Grand Prix as anywhere else,” he said. “Really, the energy’s fantastic. You could almost hear them through qualifying, just generally excited. The city’s been buzzing, as it is every year. I’ve definitely put on weight, because the food is great, and it’s very hard not to eat it. I’m just really, really happy and a big thank you to everyone.”
