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Ian Parkes and Will Gray
Monday March 29, 2021 4:00 AM
Lewis Hamilton said that “a blessing in disguise” he was forced to fight for his Bahrain Grand Prix victory on Sunday as it proved to his critics that he could win in a car that is not class of the peloton.
The Mercedes driver, whose team edged out favorites Red Bull to win the season opener, said he “enjoyed every minute” of the experience even though he no longer had the most car. strong on the grid.
“There’s always a chance to prove people wrong, and I like to think he’s definitely one of them,” Hamilton said.
“There have been a lot in the past, I’ve been here for a long time, but I hope there will be plenty of opportunities in the future to also be able to show what I was able to do today.
“We don’t have the fastest car at the moment but that’s great for me. I don’t mind having to take more out to make a difference. “
Hamilton revealed that the final laps of the race were ‘horrible’ as he fought off an attack from Verstappen, who succeeded at one point on lap 53 of 56, but was forced to surrender because his move was made outside the limits of the track.
The seven-time champion admitted he was relishing the chance to finally be able to compete, having secured several of his victories in a car that gave his rivals very few chances.
“I loved every minute of the weekend,” he added. “Knowing for us as a team that we were behind in the performance… these guys have done a better job so far and therefore for us to come away with this result as we weren’t the faster, is a real result.
“It must have started as one of the toughest [seasons], if not the… I think the pace of Red Bull is incredibly strong, as you can see. We can’t match them in qualifying at the moment.
“I thought we could get closer in the race – but it was a bit too close for my taste. We just don’t know how much better or worse they will be in other places. Maybe our car is better somewhere else than here, or maybe it’s worse.
“We were lucky to see Max go far, but that won’t happen again I’m pretty sure, so we have to do better, we have to be smarter. There is a long way to go. Twenty two [races]. Holy shit! I’ll be gray at the end of this! “
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