Lewis Hamilton Conquers Hungaroring, Verstappen Second, Bottas Third

Lewis Hamilton dominantly won the Hungarian Grand Prix today, posting his second win of the season, and eighth here at the Hungaroring.

The Brit tied Michael Schumacher’s record in wins at one circuit, with the note that the legendary German posted eight triumphs at Magny-Cours in France. Hamilton now has five 86 victories fewer than Schumi, who tops the all-time leading table.

“We did great pit stops, great strategy and right at the end there because I was managing those mediums was perfect to get on softs and get the fastest lap,” said Hamilton after the race.

🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆@LewisHamilton equals Michael Schumacher's F1 record 👏 #HungarianGP 🇭🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/nfVOyDjmlv

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 19, 2020

He was having a race of his own, with all the rivals far behind him. Lewis was proving his superiority lap after lap after lap, before eventually finishing first 8.702 seconds ahead of Max Verstappen and 9,452 seconds in front of Valtteri Bottas. Lance Stroll was fourth, and Alexander Albone reached place No.5.

Max Verstappen’s second place made the young Dutchman more than happy as he fought multiple troubles throughout the weekend. Even before the race started he damaged his wing while making his way towards the starting grid.

With such an issue he would start excellently, passing over several vehicles, among them both Ferraris, before getting into the pit and changing the broken part.

“I was struggling for grip before that. I thought the race was over, but I managed to reverse the car out of the wall,” Max explained. “It’s a ‘never give up mentality’ – bring car to grid and see what is possible. The mechanics did an amazing job to repair the car.”

Bottas was behind him, and the Fin even tried to attack his rival in the last round, but he had no chance of jumping over him. The other Mercedes’ driver started the race pretty bad, losing several positions, and that no doubt affected the entire flow of today’s event.

DRIVER STANDINGS: ROUND 3 🏆@LewisHamilton leapfrogs Valtteri Bottas to go top

Max Verstappen up to third after P2 in Hungary #HungarianGP 🇭🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/gUoxTMLFMH

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 19, 2020

He was by far the fastest in the second part of the race, which eventually allowed him to catch up with Verstappen, and many say that his performance and pace would present a real challenge to Hamilton. We saw in Austria that Bottas knows how to win. Multiple statements from him and his team suggest that the Fin won’t be pleased with the role of the second violin in the Silver Arrows this season.

As for Ferrari, they suffered another disappointing weekend, and it seems that their vehicles this season are mediocre, as well as the performances of both drivers. Vettel was sixth, Leclerc eleventh, almost the same as it was at the start. Though, we saw a good start from both of them, but as time went by, the Prancing Horse was exposing more and more flaws.

Something radical needs to be changed in their appearance; otherwise, they won’t be among the top three teams at the end of the season.

Right now, Mercedes has 121 points after three races. Red Bull is next with 55, and McLaren has 40. Racing Point Mercedes has the same number of points, and Ferrari sits fifth with just 27.

When looking at the drivers’ standings, Hamilton has 63 points, having a slight edge over Bottas with 58. Verstappen recorded 33, and Lando Norris collected 26. The first Prancing Horse on the list is Leclerc with 18 points, and he sits at place No.7.

The next race is at the legendary Silverstone in Great Britain in two weeks.