Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes both enjoyed a great race weekend in Portimao, with the former rewriting the history books after his 92 wins. However, in the initial stages of the race, McLaren caused a few problems to the defending champions.
A series of moves carried Carlos Sainz to P1 and Lando Norris to P3 for a brief period. McLaren’s ambitious efforts, however, were soon thwarted by the Silver Arrows once the Mercedes cars stabilized, and got back to their usual racing ways.
And once Hamilton passed his teammate Bottas coupled with a great sense of tire management, it was easy pickings for the Briton. By doing so, he sealed the Portuguese Grand Prix with a dominating gap between himself and the runner-up.
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Lewis Hamilton is doing the job he ‘has to do’ says Norris
Norris, though, believes that with the car he has, Hamilton should be winning every race. Nevertheless, he was happy for his compatriot and offered his congratulations later on.
Norris was quoted as saying, “I’m just happy for him, nothing more. It doesn’t mean anything to me, really. He’s in a car which should win every race, basically. He has to beat one or two other drivers, that’s it. Fair play to him, he’s still doing the job he has to do.”
Indeed, the closest challengers Hamilton has had over the course of this season, are Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen. Such has been the power and dominance of the driver, that the other teams’ drivers are finding it hard to play catch-up.
McLaren also enjoyed a decent race weekend
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After their bubble of hope was shattered by Mercedes, McLaren set about completing their realistic objectives. And in that regard, Carlos Sainz did well to finish P6 and claim a decent points finish.
He would have been joined by Lando Norris if it weren’t for the collision with Lance Stroll, which saw him drop down a handful of places. The young Briton made his way up the grid and eventually finished P13.
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But the focus was well and truly on the legendary Lewis Hamilton. And Norris’ prophecy may just come true, with the Mercedes champion eyeing more wins to seal the title early.