Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has congratulated rivals Scuderia Ferrari after the Maranello team returned to the front in the first race of the 2022 Formula One championship: Charles Leclerc secured a thrilling one-two finish ahead of his Maranello teammate Carlos Sainz in the Bahrain Grand Prix, showing Ferrari means business this season after two campaigns during which they had to settle for far less ambitious targets.
Lewis Hamilton has fought against Ferrari throughout his career, starting with the dramatic 2007 Formula 1 championship, when Kimi Raikkonen won against McLaren and the British driver in the final round of the season and most recently in 2019 until Ferrari was affected by a technical directive issued by the FIA which limited the potential of its power unit. The Mercedes driver confirmed he was happy to see the Scuderia back on the top step of the podium, more than two years on from their last win, which was scored by Sebastian Vettel in the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc took a dominant win in the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix after a great battle with Red Bull Racing Dutch driver Max Verstappen before the 2021 F1 world champion suffered late-race reliability issues and was forced to retire with just a few laps to go. That gave Lewis Hamilton the chance to take P3, a podium shared with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.
In an interview at the end of the Bahrain event, Lewis Hamilton wanted to congratulate Scuderia Ferrari on their return to the top, ahead of a long championship in which the Maranello team are confident they can finally challenge for the World Championship.
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“Big congratulations to these guys. It’s great to see them up here,” Lewis Hamilton told select members of the media – “It’s a lot of red, but I’m really, really happy to see these guys shine and be back up there. With the anthem and just the team and the energy that they always bring, it’s nice to see, and I know they had a difficult year last year, but they kept pushing. It’s great to see them back, but I hope that we can get in the battle with them at some stage.” – the Mercedes driver added.
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