Budapest [Hungary], July 24 : Despite a difficult opening lap that saw him tumble from first to fourth place, Lewis Hamilton claimed Mercedes simply "didn't have the pace" to compete for victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Hamilton ended his two-year pole position drought with a sensational qualifying performance at the Hungaroring, although he was passed by Red Bull rival Max Verstappen and the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in the space of a few turns.
While he was able to re-pass Oscar Piastri as the race progressed, the seven-time world champion was forced to settle for fourth at the finish after Sergio Perez advanced from eighth to third in the other Red Bull.
Reflecting on the race, and his start, Hamilton was quoted as saying by Formula 1, “I fell back… I hit the target that I was supposed to go to but just had wheelspin, then I was under attack all the way to Turn 2. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. I didn’t have the pace to hold onto those guys [Red Bull and McLaren] anyway."
Despite enjoying a stronger final stint and cutting the gap to third-placed Perez, he stated," Honestly, there wasn’t a lap that I enjoyed driving the car today, because the car didn’t feel good today at all. For some reason, we just generally lacked pace."
“It did get better towards the end but still it was pretty tough. I knew I wouldn’t be able to catch Sergio, or at least [get past] a Red Bull, because they’re obviously so quick. You live and you learn; yesterday was a good day and we’ll take the positives. But we’re a long shot away from winning at the moment," he added.
In the other Mercedes, George Russell recovered from his shocking Q1 exit to cross the line in seventh, which became sixth when Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was penalised five seconds for speeding in the pit lane.
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