Hamilton records 88th F1 win in Spanish GP

Lewis Hamilton was worried about Max Verstappen before the Spanish Grand Prix yesterday.

Worried, too, about how the Mercedes tires would cope under a searing summer sun after wilting last week in the lesser heat of Silverstone.

His concerns proved as unfounded as his 88th career victory was comprehensive. The six-time world champion is now within three of Michael Schumacher’s Formula One (F1) record of 91 wins.

Hamilton beat Verstappen by 24 seconds to extend his championship lead over him to 37 points – 132 to 95 – after six races.

“I was just in a daze out there. I felt really good,” Hamilton said. “I didn’t even know it was the last lap I was so zoned in.”

His teammate Valtteri Bottas is fading from the picture, and already languishes 43 points behind Hamilton, despite winning the first race of the season.

Hamilton’s fourth win of the coronavirus-shortened campaign was also timely, considering Verstappen’s superb win last Sunday – when Mercedes anxiety levels rose.

“It was a surprise because we had that problem with the tyres last weekend,” Hamilton said. “But we seem to have understood it.”

The pre-race thinking from Mercedes was that Verstappen – who has eight podiums in the last nine races – was the favourite. But a thrilling contest never happened, and Verstappen’s priority became keeping Bottas in third place.

“It was good to split the two Mercedes. I didn’t have the pace like Lewis but I’m happy with second,” he said. “The start was crucial to get ahead of Valtteri.”

Although Bottas secured a bonus point for the fastest lap, he is six powints behind Verstappen in the standings.

The winding 4.7-kilometre ( 2.9-mile) Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with its combination of slow and fast corners, is one of the hardest for overtaking.

AP

Driver Championship standings

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 132

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 95

3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 89

4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 45

5. Lance Stroll (Racing Point) 40

6. Alex Albon (Red Bull) 40

7. Lando Norris (McLaren) 39

8. Sergio Perez (Racing Point) 32

9. Carlos Sainz (McLaren) 23

10. Daniel Ricciardo (Renault) 20

1. Mercedes 221

2. Red Bull 135

3. Racing Point 63

4. McLaren 62

5. Ferrari 61

6. Renault 36

7. AlphaTauri 16

8. Alfa Romeo 2

9. Haas 1

10. Williams 0

Spanish GP results

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 25

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 18

3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 16

4. Lance Stroll (Racing Point) 12

5. Sergio Perez (Racing Point) 10

6. Carlos Sainz (McLaren) 8

7. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) 6

8. Alex Albon (Red Bull) 4

9. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri)

10. Lando Norris (McLaren) 1