Hungarian Grand Prix 2019
Lewis Hamilton has had a number of fine performances at Hungaroring, a track he’s dominated for years. But this latest one might be his finest yet. The reigning world champion produced an amazing drive in his thrilling come-from-behind victory over Max Verstappen in the 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Verstappen very nearly paid off his Hungarian Grand Prix 2019 betting odds as he led for virtually the entire race. But Hamilton’s brilliant driving — not to mention the team’s savvy two-stop strategy — denied the Dutchman of a third victory in four races.
That win was a perfect palate cleanser for Hamilton after last week’s disastrous showing in Hockenheim and should leave him pretty happy heading into the mid-season break. Although, everyone else will be busy trying to find a way to catch up to the runaway leader.
Highlights of the game
Fresh off his classic victory at the German Grand Prix, Verstappen carried over his recent fine form in qualifying for Hungary as he claimed the first pole of his career.
Hamilton could only manage third as Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas snuck in between him and Verstappen. Meanwhile, the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel rounded out the top five.
Once the race began, Verstappen got away clean. However, Bottas had a disastrous start. Not only did he drop all the way down to fifth, but he also damaged his front wing after a collision with Leclerc, which saw the Mercedes driver make an early pit stop.
It didn’t take long for Verstappen and Hamilton to separate themselves from the pack. The Ferraris were unable to keep pace, though, as the top two zoomed ahead to effectively make this a two-horse race.
Meanwhile, Hamilton slowly but surely chipped away at Verstappen’s lead as he whittled it down to just over a second by lap 24. Hamilton looked like he was about to pit first, but his team kept him out a while longer. Instead, Verstappen went in first and rejoined just ahead of Leclerc.
Hamilton finally entered the pits on lap 31, but his stop wasn’t as crisp as he would’ve liked and returned nearly six seconds back of Verstappen. It didn’t matter, though, as Hamilton sliced it down to 0.7 seconds in the space of four laps.
The Mercedes driver tried to make his move on lap 36, but Verstappen did well to defend his lead. Hamilton would keep on the pressure on the Red Bull for the ensuing laps.
With Hamilton unable to nudge ahead, he comes in for a second pit stop on lap 49, which would be the turning point of the entire race. He instantly puts those fresh tyres to use as he proceeds to set some impressive lap times to close the gap once again on Verstappen.
With just eight laps to go, Hamilton managed to reduce Verstappen’s lead to under nine seconds. The leader’s tyres were clearly shot, and Hamilton still had ample time to work.
And work he did. He got to within a second with four laps left, and on the following lap, Hamilton finally zoomed past the helpless Verstappen claim the lead.
After that, it was elementary. Verstappen, desperately in need of a new set of tyres, comes in on the following lap just to finish the race as Hamilton basically strolls to victory.
Meanwhile, Vettel added to the notable Hungarian Grand Prix 2019 highlights by taking a podium finish from his team-mate on the third-to-last lap.
But the day undoubtedly belonged to Hamilton, who once again brought his very best at the Hungaroring.
Key statistics
Hamilton will head into the summer break with 250 points, 62 points clear of team-mate Valtteri Bottas in the driver’s standings. Verstappen is a further seven points back of Bottas for second.
With Hamilton’s win, the Hungarian Grand Prix is now tied with the Canadian Grand Prix for his most career Grand Prix wins with seven.
Hamilton also extended his run of consecutive points finishes to 24 races in a row, which is now the third-longest streak in history.
Meanwhile, Verstappen made a bunch of history in Hungary. Not only did he become the first Dutchman to claim an F1 pole — and the 100th different polesitter in F1 history — he also became the first Dutchman to take an F1 podium in Hungary since his father, Jos, who did it in 1994.
What’s next?
The Hungarian GP is going to be the last bit of F1 action for a while. That’s because F1 will be on its annual four-week summer break for the time being. It will all start back up again in Spa for the Belgium Grand Prix on the first of September.
Similar to Hungary, Vettel and Hamilton are the last two winners in Belgium. The German won last year’s race despite Hamilton taking pole. Meanwhile, a certain Max Verstappen stood alongside them on the podium, and he will be seeking a similar result this year.
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