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Lewis Hamilton: "It's the most incredible thing to work in such an environment."
Photo:
Rudy Carezzevoli / AP
It would have ended after three laps:
The Formula 1 premiere at the Autodromo do Algarve in southern Portugal offered the hoped-for spectacle at the start.
A downpour had moistened the already slippery asphalt, which caused a lot of confusion over the first few kilometers.
Verstappen, who started third, first passed Bottas on the demanding track, but then collided with Sergio Perez's Racing Point.
Shortly afterwards, Valtteri Bottas overtook the leading Lewis Hamilton, before suddenly McLaren driver Carlos Sainz took advantage of his softer tires and took over the lead.
But after six laps the usual order was restored, and after 66 round trips, Hamilton cemented with his victory what can now be called "natural order" in the premier class of motorsport.
The result:
It is still spectacular: with his 92nd career victory, the exceptional driver Hamilton wrote himself in the history books.
The Briton is now the sole Grand Prix record holder ahead of Michael Schumacher.
He outclassed his second-placed team-mate Bottas by almost 26 seconds.
Max Verstappen in the Red Bull completed the podium (+34.5 seconds), ahead of Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari.
Read the race report here.
From fifth place all lapped:
Never, said Mercedes Motorsport Director Toto Wolff at "Sky", had one thought of "one day breaking Michael's record."
And even if the Grand Prix at the Nürburgring two weeks ago, on which Hamilton had already equalized Schumacher's record, Wolff could have given a hint, he also said: "It shows how extraordinary Lewis and Michael are and were in their time. "
On lap 61 he was already the fastest, despite a cramp in his right leg.
In the end, the Briton had lapped the entire field once, except for Bottas, Verstappen and Leclerc.
Please give me soft tires!
The Finn Bottas, the only remaining "competitor" of Hamilton, failed with his request to have the soft tires fitted at the pit stop.
The team refused and gave Bottas - like Hamilton - the hard tires.
"It's a tricky situation when you've given the leader the hard tires because you think it's the right choice and the other driver tries to convince you otherwise," said Wolff after the race.
It is doubtful whether it would have been useful anyway, as Hamilton drove the fastest race lap shortly before the end - and improved himself in the process.
Roller coaster of the Algarve:
The Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, also called the "roller coaster of the Algarve", was - due to the Corona - the venue for a Formula 1 race for the first time.
It went up and down for 4.684 kilometers, from left to right in the middle of a hilly area around 20 kilometers from the sea.
Some passages are almost invisible.
The asphalt is new, smooth and slippery, and now and then there is wind.
It is the fourth venue for the Portuguese Grand Prix, which was last held in Estoril in 1996.
A point for Vettel:
"I told him at the Nürburgring: Now get the 92, he did that," said Ferrari driver Vettel, who was "of course not satisfied" with tenth place, but congratulated the winner without envy : "You have to bring this consistency over the years first. Congratulations, Lewis."
For Vettel it was the first point since Mugello.
Leclerc's fourth place after a strong performance made the weekend in Portugal a good one for Ferrari.
Qualifying in Portugal had already shown that Leclerc can still cope better with the car than his team-mate.
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Unusual pictures in times of Corona: Leclerc during the Grand Prix of Portugal - and in front of the well-filled grandstand
Photo:
Rudy Carezzevoli / Getty Images
For
Formula 1
it goes on ...:
And the very next Sunday (November 1, 13:10, Live Scores SPIEGEL.de, TV: RTL, Sky).
Then
drive the pilots in Imola, Italy.
Five races are still on the season calendar.
..., but for one of them it was the last assignment:
No, Vettel does not quit - and he will probably not be released early either;
at least if you can believe Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto.
Instead, RTL reporter Kai Ebel had his last outdoor assignment in Portimao.
Contrary to the TV channel's original plan, the reporter will not travel to Emilia Romagna in the coming week.
According to its own statement, because of the corona risk, RTL does not use its employees outside and produces all remaining races of the season from the Cologne studio - Ebel will be absent from the pit lanes from now on.
In the coming season, RTL will no longer be allowed to broadcast, Sky will then broadcast exclusively in Germany.
According to RTL, the 56-year-old was in Spain for the first time for the private broadcaster on May 3, 1992.
A total of 498 appearances in the motorsport premier class will have been for him.
His often eccentric outfits made him prominent.
With material from
dpa
and sid
Icon: The mirror
