Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes have been backed to be a ‘major threat’ at the upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix following his record-breaking triumph at Silverstone last weekend.
Last time out, the seven-time world champion ended his 945-day wait for a victory, winning a historic ninth British Grand Prix in front of his home crowd.
Hamilton’s team – Mercedes – have now won back-to-back grands prix, with George Russell having capitalised on Max Verstappen and Lando Norris’ collision to take victory in Austria a week before his team-mate’s home win.
A hat-trick of victories for the Brackley-based outfit would have been unthinkable just a few weeks ago, however, one F1 pundit believes that they have a real chance to do so as the sport heads to Hungary.
Lewis Hamilton won the British Grand Prix last Sunday
Lewis Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell won the Austrian GP prior to Silverstone
How will Lewis Hamilton do at the Hungarian Grand Prix?
Hamilton has had great success at the Hungarian Grand Prix over the years, winning eight F1 races at the Hungaroring – four more than any other driver – with his first victory coming in 2007 and his latest triumph in 2020.
With his victory at Silverstone, Hamilton became the driver with the most wins at any single circuit in F1 with nine, and he could match that record were he to be successful again next time out.
Former F1 driver and now pundit Jolyon Palmer pointed out Hamilton’s Hungary record recently, making an exciting claim for fans of the seven-time champion.
“Amazingly we’ve now had six winners from 12 races, showing how competitive this season has become,” Palmer wrote on F1 Unlocked after the British Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes have improved significantly in recent weeks
“Hamilton has always thrived at Silverstone, but he’s always been brilliant in Budapest as well – where he took his last pole position in Formula 1.
“So, I’d expect him and Mercedes to be a major threat again next time out.”
As well as it being a strong circuit for Hamilton, the seven-time champion’s car could also be even more competitive in terms of pace by the time it hits the track for FP1 on Friday – that’s according to team boss Toto Wolff.
Upgrades have put Mercedes back in contention for podiums and victories and the team plans on bringing further updates to their cars for both the Hungarian GP and the subsequent Belgian Grand Prix, Wolff has explained.