Hamilton takes the lead as Alonso finishes 3rd in Spain
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton finished the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona in second position. It was his third consecutive second place. Today’s result means that he takes the lead in the Drivers’ Championship with 30 points.
After 65 laps, Lewis came home 6.7 seconds behind winner Felipe Massa. Fernando Alonso ended up third following an incident at the first corner and is second in the Drivers’ Championship with 28 points. Lewis and Fernando were both on two stop strategies. Lewis came in on laps 22 (8.5 seconds) and 47 (6.7 seconds). Fernando made his pit stops on laps 19 (9.7 seconds) and 48 (6.7 seconds). After four out of 17 races, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes is the only team to score points in every race of the season with both drivers. The team leads the Constructors’ rankings with 58 points ahead of Ferrari on 49 points.
Lewis Hamilton “Things just keep getting better and I continue living my dream. In the early stages I was struggling to get heat into the tyres and had a bit of oversteer, but things improved considerably a few laps into the race - however the gap to Felipe was already too big. In the second stint I was a bit unlucky with the traffic, but that happens sometimes. Overall I’m happy with the outcome of the race, and I want to keep on scoring points. The team has worked really hard since Bahrain and whilst we didn’t win I still think we can take some satisfaction as we are leading both Championships.”
Fernando Alonso “My chance for victory disappeared after the incident at the first corner. I got off the line OK at the start and was able to get a tow from Felipe and challenge into the first corner as I was already half a car length in front however we touched, and I had to go on the gravel to avoid an accident. We were both lucky to finish the race. As a result by the second corner I was fourth. I also sustained a bit of damage to my car which upset the balance for the rest of the race. I lost additional time in the second stint as the tyres were not working as well, but I still think the result would have stayed the same even if we had used the softer tyres.”
Ron Dennis “Coming into the Monaco Grand Prix being first and second in the Drivers’ Championship and leading the Constructors’ battle is a good achievement for the entire team. Our pace was a little weak in the middle sector. Fernando’s race was hampered by having damaged his deflector during his efforts to get past Massa in the first corner. Another solid performance from Lewis. As you would expect we will continue to push hard in our development programme to put the team in the best possible position to win as many of the remaining races as possible.”
Norbert Haug “It’s great that Lewis and Fernando are at the top of the list in the Drivers’ Championship after the fourth race here in Barcelona. Well done and thank you to all the team members for leading the Constructors’ rankings too. Fernando showed a great and committed manoeuvre in the first corner that unfortunately didn’t pay off. Lewis again did a great job – we will keep pushing and will increase our performance further. We are now looking forward to the next race in Monaco in two weeks time.”
