Lewis Hamilton: Canadian GP domination is 'great blow' to Ferrari
"To come here and deliver what we've delivered is a great blow to the Ferraris," says Hamilton after cutting Vettel's title lead to 12 points; Praise for Bottas and Stroll after faultless weekend
Tuesday 13 June 2017 16:14, UK
A confident Lewis Hamilton believes he has delivered a "great blow" to Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari with his masterful Canadian GP victory.
Sky F1's Martin Brundle described Hamilton as "unbeatable" as the Mercedes driver led from start to finish in Montreal, taking advantage of Vettel's first-lap woes to cut his championship lead to 12 points.
His faultless weekend represents a major contrast from the Silver Arrows' Monaco struggles, with Hamilton praising his team's work on the W08 as he swung the title pendulum yet again.
"It's been an incredible weekend - I couldn't be happier," a triumphant Hamilton said after the race. "The team came away from Monaco scratching their heads but everyone wanting to work, to pull together, which we did.
"I don't think in the five years I've been with the team, they have pulled together so well and really work towards the same cause. To come here and deliver what we've delivered is a great blow to the Ferraris."
Key to Hamilton's victory was a storming pole lap that left Vettel in his wake, with the multi world champion's scrape with Max Verstappen at Turn One eventually sending him to the back of the field after fitting a new front wing.
The German's comeback drive to fourth was, however, damage limitation of the highest entity, and Hamilton was still wary of the Scuderia's threat despite Mercedes securing their first one-two finish of 2017 to lead the constructors' standings.
"They are still very, very quick and they are still very much there," Hamilton added to Sky Sports F1. "They are going to be very hard to beat. More importantly for us, we know now after the last race where to develop this car moving forward and that is going to really make a difference in winning this championship."
Following Mercedes' intensive work to recover from Monaco, the pressure will now be on Ferrari to find a solution as both reliability and pace issues plagued their afternoon.
"In Maranello we will carry out a detailed analysis of the race, making the most of the data gathered as we prepare as well as possible for the next round in Baku," admitted team principal Maurizio Arrivabene.
Bottas partnership on 'another level'
Hamilton also reserved praise for team-mate Valtteri Bottas, whose aggressive start to the race from third was key to Vettel's demise. But why is his new-for-2017 partnership "different" to his four years with Nico Rosberg?
"It's always a great thing for a team to achieve a 1-2," Hamilton explained. "I think experiencing it with Valtteri is definitely different - the chemistry Valtteri and I have is different.
Hamilton delivers turning point
"The working environment we've both experienced this year is on a complete other level, on a professional level that's been above any other year that I have experienced. That obviously comes from Valtteri's maturity and how the team also works with us, to give us a fair platform to fight."
Thumbs up for Stroll
The ease in which Hamilton cantered to victory in Canada was perhaps summed up best when the 32-year-old gave Williams' Lance Stroll a thumbs up as he lapped the teenage rookie.
Explaining his reasoning for doing so, Hamilton claims it wasn't just for the rookie moving out of his way, but that he wanted to acknowledge an impressive performance from Stroll which eventually resulted in his first F1 points.
"I know he's had such a difficult season," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "He's been dropped in the deep end, with critics and all those different things you have when you're 18 and you're experiencing them for the first time in Formula 1 - in one of the most difficult seasons.
"He looked like he was doing a good job, and I just wanted to acknowledge that."
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