Lewis Hamilton discredited after Mexico GP as Christian Horner labels star lucky

30 October 2023 , 12:33

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Lewis Hamilton finished second behind Max Verstappen (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Christian Horner put it down to "luck" that Lewis Hamilton finished as closest rival to Max Verstappen at the end of the Mexican Grand Prix.

The seven-time world champion started the race sixth on the grid but only Verstappen was ahead of him on the road as he took the chequered flag. He was 13.8 seconds behind the Dutchman as he did so with Charles Leclerc behind him in third, having fallen from pole position.

And Carlos Sainz had also dropped back after qualifying on the front row. Hamilton was behind them when the race was stopped after Kevin Magnussen's huge crash at the mid-way point, but made light work of getting past them after the restart.

The red flags meant everyone could pick what tyres they wanted to restart on. Mercedes gambled on the mediums while Ferrari played it safe with the hard compound. Verstappen was also on the hards but had the pace advantage to mean it didn't matter.

But the extra grip Hamilton had helped him to beat Leclerc to second place. Regarding the Brit's race, though, Red Bull team principal Horner thinks he was saved by the timing of the red flag.

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"They had a bit of a stroke of luck because they went in very early for a one-stop strategy," he said. "I think, in the end, they would have been beaten by the Ferraris. But it is true that they had good speed and did well in terms of tyre wear, as we have seen from them all year."

Horner was particularly baffled by that decision from Ferrari to send both their cars back out on the hard compound for the rest of the race. That call, he said, made it simple for his driver Verstappen to speed off into the distance unchallenged.

Speaking of the red flag, he said: "It completely neutralized our race, but the good thing at that moment was that Charles switched to the hard tyre just like us. We were afraid that he would go for the medium compound. Then Max had it completely under control again."

Hamilton admitted after the race that he had tried to chase Verstappen down, but eventually scrapped that plan to make sure he held on to second place. "The red flag probably played into our hands in terms of getting onto the fresher tyre at the end," he admitted. "But I just I didn't know if whether or not the medium would make it that long.

"I was trying to see if I could close the gap to Max but he was long gone and I could only just about equal his times. But great result for the team, really proud of everyone."

Daniel Moxon