Sunday: Hamilton and Rosberg offer an epic battle to Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton (No. 44) – Victory

The Briton is aware of having won a race that will undoubtedly go down in history: « What an incredible day! It was a really tough race and I am absolutely thrilled to have won it. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a race like that! »

« My weekend started well but I didn’t really have a great pace for qualifying and the race. I knew I would need a good start and that taking the lead in the first corner was crucial for my race, » he explained.

Then it was one of the moments of grace of the race, with multiple on-track battles against his teammate: « From there, it was quite a battle. Nico drove fantastically and, to be honest, he had a better pace than me today, but I managed to hold on. I knew, when the safety car came in, that Nico would be on softs and he would be quick. Trying to stay ahead of him was so difficult and when I crossed the line, I was just relieved. When you’re racing against your teammate, the pressure is really intense and we both knew we had to bring the cars home for the team and for the championship. »

He thanks his team at length and warmly for making this possible: « All the credit must go to the team for allowing us to have this race, and I hope the fans enjoyed the show we put on tonight. A big thank you to the team, especially to my engineers for all the information they gave me during the race, and to everyone here and at the factories for their hard work. Another one-two finish, it’s just fantastic for us. I am also happy to have joined Fangio with 24 wins, he is one of the greatest drivers of all time so it’s truly an honor. »

Nico Rosberg (no. 6) – 2nd

Same sentiment from the German who claims to have experienced a great moment in his career: « It was a great battle with Lewis tonight and this kind of race is exactly why I do F1; I enjoyed driving today. »

He is disappointed but happy with the work accomplished against a Lewis Hamilton who turned into an impenetrable defender: « Obviously, it’s very disappointing to finish second in the end, but I gave it my all and it just didn’t work out for me. Lewis did a great job defending his position, and so often when I managed to get past, I couldn’t see him in the blind spot of my mirrors. »

He also reflects on the change in race strategy that almost allowed him to fight for victory thanks to the safety car: « Our strategy was good and changing it after the first stint was a decision I made with the team. It was a slightly slower strategy, but it gave me the best chance to overtake Lewis in the end with my soft tires. However, the difference between the softs and the mediums wasn’t as significant as expected, and that’s why I didn’t manage to pass. »

Rosberg concludes by referring to the current debate on the lack of spectacle in F1: « The positive point is that this is a great day for Formula 1. The race was a fantastic spectacle, and I hope this will prove those who criticize our new technologies wrong. »