James Allison described Lewis Hamilton’s win from pole at the Hungarian Grand Prix as “the cherry on yesterday’s cake”
The defending champion secured his sixth victory at the Hungaroring but it has been a place where Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport have struggled at in recent years with Hamilton’s win only their second in Hungary during the hybrid era.
“It is tempting to reach for the clichés about a bittersweet afternoon but actually this just feels sweet.
“After a tough Friday at a track where we have not always prospered in recent years, today’s result is the cherry on yesterday’s cake.
“We made brilliant starts thanks to great work by the team and both drivers, held position and then began running our race exactly to plan.”
The start worked out perfectly for Mercedes as the held on to their one-two from qualifying ahead of the Scuderia Ferrari’s but it was in the latter stages that Valtteri Bottas saw his race falter as he lost positions to both Ferrari’s and Daniel Ricciardo and made contact with the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing.
“Both cars performed strongly just when they needed to: Lewis was in control throughout, managing his pace and tyre temperatures with consummate skill; Valtteri did an exceptional job, stopping very early to cover Kimi, and it was hugely disappointing for him that he was not able to bring home the P2 finish that his performance so richly deserved.
“Notwithstanding that, it was a fantastic win for Lewis and the team, which sends us into the summer break with a lovely feel-good factor.”
