Lewis Hamilton suffered a last-lap puncture, but dramatically held on to win the British Grand Prix 2020 and became the first driver to win a record-breaking 7 home Grand Prix. Coming into the race, Hamilton had equalled the record of winning 6 titles in Silverstone last year held by Michael Schumacher.
He went into the British GP on the back of two successive victories in Austria and Hungary. The win puts him at a whopping 87 wins, 4 shy of all-time great and legend Michael Schumacher.
The six-time world champion had a fairly comfortable race for 50 laps before suffering a front tyre puncture while compatriot Valteri Bottas also suffered a puncture to take him out of the points. Max Verstappen, couldn’t make the most of Hamilton’s puncture and finished in second place, while Charles Leclerc was welcomed back to the podium after the Austrian GP.
A dramatic final minute at Silverstone, as @LewisHamilton and his Mercedes hold on for a famous victory! 😮 🏆#BritishGP 🇬🇧 #F1 pic.twitter.com/CmD8hrz2Fw
— Formula 1 (@F1) August 2, 2020
It was a disappointing end for Daniel Kvyat and Kevin Magnussen, who suffered bad crashes during the race. Racing Point stand-in driver, Nico Hulkenburg was unable to participate due to a power issue with the car. The World Championship standings have Mercedes leading the pile by winning all the races in the 2020 F1 season until now and have a huge margin over second-placed Red Bull.
Hamilton has gone into the 2020 season vying for a seventh World Championship to tie the record held by Michael Schumacher. The Brit has been in scintillating form this season.
The added importance for Hamilton this season comes with the worldwide movement against racism – Black Lives Matter. With Lewis Hamilton, being the ambassador for the movement in Formula 1 and the only black driver on the grid, the 2020 season win would be a really emotional one for him. The campaign against racism has grown among different sports and thus Lewis Hamilton winning his seventh World title could make a mark in the record books and prove to the world that “Colour doesn’t define success or failure.”
Lewis Hamilton is closing in on Schumacher
Michael Schumacher currently holds the record of 91 Grand Prix wins and the German has set a lot of records in the sport, which seems to be under threat by the British ace. The gap between the Mercedes drivers has widened to 30 points now with another race in Silverstone next Sunday, to mark the 70th anniversary of the track.
This season is looking to be one of the most exciting ones in the history of the sport and Lewis Hamilton has to maintain his winning streak of in 2020 to eclipse one of the all-time greats and former teammate, Michael Schumacher.
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