The Canadian GP has always been a thrilling spectacle, and it did not disappoint this time around as well. Max Verstappen took the honors, but Lewis Hamilton capped off an incredible weekend as he secured his second podium of the season in Canada.
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Hamilton started the race with a battle alongside Kevin Magnussen but steered clear of him soon. He pitted during the first safety car incident, which allowed him to go long in the race. And in lap 25, he finally got past Fernando Alonso, which he maintained towards the end.
🥉 in Montreal 😀 pic.twitter.com/8dbXXnp3f8
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) June 19, 2022
Speaking after a promising performance, he said, “It’s quite overwhelming to get this third place – it’s been such a battle this year with the car, but we continue to stay vigilant, focused and never giving up, and that’s so something I’m proud of and inspired by my crew. So, thank you to everyone that’s here and back at the factory.”
“They were a little bit quicker, and I was giving everything but, we’re getting closer, so we’ve got to keep pushing and keep pushing, and hopefully we’ll eventually be in the fight with these guys,” he added.
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Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz breezed past the rest and were in a league of their own. However, the Brit was happy with Mercedes’ improvement in terms of race pace after a grueling race in Baku.
Lewis Hamilton reflects on Mercedes’ impressive performance
Friday’s free practice sessions proved to be a hard task for both the Mercedes drivers. They struggled once again, and many expected their struggles to continue. They showed improvement in qualifying in wet conditions. However, the W13’s race pace in the dry track surprised Hamilton as they matched the front-runners.
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He stated, “I could just about see him in the end. Thankfully, safety car, but honestly our pace was quiet good, and we did a lot of work back in simulator to get the set up right. So, I’m excited, and as I said, didn’t expect this coming to the weekend, my second podium of the year, so this feels really special on my first Grand Prix win. I love it here in Montreal. So, big thank you all the Canadians.
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And more importantly, after enduring back pain in Azerbaijan, the seven-time world champions revealed he is back to full fitness hilariously. “It’s good, I’m back to being young,” he conveyed.
Hamilton and Mercedes can be satisfied with the performance they put in today. They will look to carry this momentum forward as the season progresses.