LEWIS Hamilton could not have chosen a better way to demonstrate his ability to the world on Sunday. His seventh Formula One World Championship title seemed inevitable after another dominant season, but to win in Turkey from the third row of the grid, and in really difficult conditions, was impressive to watch.
Races like these are never easy, as so many other drivers found. Tyre temperature is always important, but particularly when you are trying to keep wet and intermediate tyres working on a track which is soaking wet, later starting to dry, but with big puddles and wet kerbs ready to catch you out. Keeping control of an F1 car in these conditions is never easy, even for the most talented and experienced driver.
If the Racing Point was the car to have in qualifying, Lewis’ Mercedes was the better race car as it put heat into its tyres after about five laps and really began to work. His progress was exactly what you want to see in a race like this – steady, consistent, building up an understanding of the racing lines that work best as the conditions change. This is all about building confidence in the car and yourself.
By the end of the race Lewis’ intermediate tyres looked more like slicks, but the fact that he rejected a call from the team to make a last-minute pit stop showed us how much he has learned over the years. He knew what the car was capable of on very worn tyres, and he had the confidence to keep pushing in those conditions and get the job done. To stop would have created risk, taken away the rhythm he had built, plus he was far ahead of the opposition.
Confidence is everything in these kinds of conditions, when braking hard is important to get the tyres working, but not too hard in case you lock the wheels. In many ways Lewis' performance was a reminder of why he has become the top driver of this era, but even so this was a special way to match Michael Schumacher’s record of seven titles. I first met Lewis way back when he was a young kid in karting, when he clearly had a lot of talent and determination, but to win seven World Championships between 2008 and 2020 is just fantastic.
Lance Stroll did a really good job on Saturday and again in the race on Sunday. The Racing Point was working well, as we saw with a very strong performance from Sergio Perez, but it was Lance who took the poll and then made a perfect start. I have known his father, Lawrence Stroll, since one of the companies he built – Tommy Hilfiger – was a sponsor of Team Lotus during my first seasons in Formula 1.
Lawrence is a good businessman, full of energy, and his deals to buy Racing Point and Aston Martin are exactly the kind of thing he does well. I have known lots of drivers who have had family support during their career, but in Turkey we saw that Lance has the talent and skill necessary to be racing at this level.
It was tough for him that his tyre performance fell away later in the race, but a really brilliant result for the team when Sergio finished second. With Sebastian Vettel finishing third I am sure Lawrence Stroll had plenty to smile about, and Sebastian will be looking forward to joining a team that seems to be moving in the right direction.
I do hope that Sergio gets a drive elsewhere in Formula 1, both he and Sebastian are showing how experience really counts when driving an F1 car in difficult conditions like this.
For a while it looked like Max Verstappen might win Sunday’s race, the Red Bull Hondas looking very quick during the early part of the race, but when he went off while pushing Sergio and team mate Alex Albon also suffered a spin, their challenge faded. This looked like a missed opportunity for Red Bull, but I doubt even they would have been able to keep Lewis behind in the second stage of the race.
It was a tough day at the office for Kimi Raikkonen and Valtteri Bottas, Kimi having done a really good job to quality eighth for Alfa Romeo and Valtteri hoping for the kind of strong performance we know that he is capable of producing.
Kimi knew that the race was going to be very difficult due to his car’s setup, but Valtteri had one of those days that shows just how difficult this business can be. A minor spin with Esteban Ocon’s Renault on lap one followed by a second spin which damaged the front wing resulted in a day he would prefer to forget. I am certain he will come back very strongly in Bahrain.
With the global pandemic continuing to cause problems around the world, it is a credit to Formula 1 that they have been able to continue putting on a World Championship and to turn to tracks such as in Istanbul to provide the racing we need. It was a shame that, once again, we could not have spectators, but Turkey provided us with a very memorable event, and one that Lewis Hamilton, his team and fans will always remember. Well done to him.
