The Mercedes driver, Lewis Hamilton won the Portuguese Formula 1 Grand Prix. This year he is aiming for a 7th world champion title.
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) won the 92nd victory of his Formula 1 career at the Portuguese Grand Prix on Sunday 25th October 2020, breaking Michael Schumacher’s record for success.
The Briton is also consolidating his lead in the world championship, five rounds to go, and is now 77 points ahead of Bottas. This year he is aiming for a 7th title which would allow him to equal another record of the legendary German driver.
Making F1 history feels like…#PortugueseGP 🇵🇹 #F1 @LewisHamilton @MercedesAMGF1 pic.twitter.com/b31qXaOljn
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 25, 2020
A fifth world title with Mercedes
“I have not yet had time to really think about it, I am still mentally in the race”, reacted hot Hamilton, questioned on the importance of being now, at 35, the absolute record holder of victories in F1.
However, he jumped out of his car once it was parked in front of the “1” sign at the end of the race, to go and hug his father who had come to watch the race.
This was attended by around 25,000 spectators admitted around the Algarve circuit under strict sanitary conditions due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I owe it to the people at the factory who keep innovating and working,” said the British champion who has won five of his six world titles with Mercedes, the first having been acquired with McLaren.
Hamilton took the lead on lap 20, passing his teammate Valtteri Bottas, who finished 2nd and did not let go despite uncertain weather punctuated by a few drops of rain and strong gusts of wind.
Rain of records
“It was tough today, but it was mostly a question of temperatures,” said the winner. All the drivers had to manage the wear of their tires but also their difficult warming up on the new asphalt in Portimao.
A few drops of rain that fell at the start made things even worse, but the track remained mostly dry.
The Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull) finished 3rd, and therefore still on the podium, as every time he does not give up in 2020, ahead of the Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 4th.
Frenchman Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) took 5th place, unstoppably overtaking Carlos Sainz’s McLaren at the very end of the race. The two Renault drivers, Esteban Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo finished 8th and 9th respectively, ahead of Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari).
Still the only black driver
Hamilton made his debut in F1 in 2007 and remains the only black driver. He was crowned world champion for the first time in 2008, four years after Michael Schumacher’s last title, then replaced him at Mercedes in early 2013.
He is also ahead of “Michael Schumacher” in the number of podiums (161 to 155), pole positions (97 to 68) and “hat-tricks” – pole position, best lap and victory in the same Grand Prix – a performance which he succeeded again this weekend.
Mercedes failed to secure a 7th consecutive constructors’ title in Portugal, but the German brand has a large lead over Red Bull.
She has dominated F1 since the arrival of hybrid engines in 2014, the only title to have escaped Hamilton in 2016 having gone to her then-teammate, German Nico Rosberg.
