Lewis Hamilton/3rd after Ferrari error: “I thought it was all over now”

Lewis Hamilton crossed the finish line of the Bahrain Grand Prix in third place behind Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli. The 41-year-old Briton put in a tenacious performance at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, fighting his way back up the field after a very difficult start to the race (at one point down to P18) – his 208th podium finish of his Formula 1 career, his sixth this season, but his first since finishing third at Silverstone in early July!

Could the seven-time champion have achieved more in this race? Probably not: Although Hamilton started from the front row and subsequently had to cope with Ferrari’s misjudgement of going into the race on tyres with no tread (intermediates would have been the better choice), he then fought his way up the field, though he was unable to match the pace of Verstappen and Antonelli on the day. So: P3 after such a brilliant drive really is the best you can hope for.

No driver is more popular in Malaysia than Lewis Hamilton; this is not only down to his unparalleled successes, but also to the fact that, as a Mercedes driver, he used to make countless appearances in this country on behalf of Mercedes’ partner, Petronas.

As Hamilton moved up the field during the race, the cheers from the stands were unmistakable, and when Lewis stepped up for his first interview after the thrilling race, shouts of “Le-wis! Le-wis! Le-wis!” rang out from the stands.

The aforementioned Lewis said after the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia: “First of all, heartfelt congratulations to Max. What a gruelling race! Everyone could see our tyre choice of slicks at the start of the race, and it wasn’t easy watching the rivals on their intermediates simply pull away.”

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As a reminder: Hamilton was down as low as 18th at one stage…

The Briton continued: “I said to myself: ‘Don’t let up now! Maybe there’ll still be a chance later on in the race.’ And that’s exactly how it turned out.”

“Of course, you can question the initial tyre choice, but the team did an excellent job with all the subsequent tyre changes. I feel as though I was constantly chasing rivals throughout the whole Grand Prix; it was exhausting, but it was also great fun. That’s why I’d say: of all my races here in Malaysia, this is the best I’ve ever experienced.”