Lewis Hamilton has candidly admitted that his driving performance has not been at its peak for over a year, and this was evident in his poor start at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen capitalized on the opportunity and secured a record-breaking victory.
Verstappen outmaneuvered pole-sitter Hamilton on the downhill stretch to the opening corner at the Hungaroring, establishing a significant lead and cruising to his seventh consecutive victory in what has been a notably one-sided Formula One season.
Hamilton’s struggles continued as he finished in fourth place, with both McLaren drivers overtaking him in the first two bends of the 70-lap race.
Lando Norris secured the runner-up position, trailing Verstappen by 33.7 seconds, while Sergio Perez showcased an impressive comeback from ninth place to finish third. Oscar Piastri secured the fifth position.
With this win, Verstappen has clinched nine victories out of the 11 rounds so far, extending his lead over Perez by 110 points as they approach the final round before the summer break in Belgium. Red Bull remains unbeaten this season, achieving a new F1 record with their 12th consecutive win.
Hamilton’s struggle for a win continues, as he now faces the longest winless streak of his career with 34 appearances without a victory.
“I have not been at my best for over a year,” said Hamilton who has not won since he was denied a record eighth world title at the concluding round in Abu Dhabi in 2021.
Across the same period, Verstappen – the man who beat him to the title on that controversial night in the desert – has triumphed 24 times.
But the seven-time world champion added: “I am not disappointed. It was obvious that we do not have the quickest car. Max got a better start than me, I got a bit of wheelspin, and I was a bit compromised after that.
“I am really proud of myself and the job we did to get pole and outperform the world champion and the other two McLaren cars that are quicker than us. But today is just a reality check. The reality is that we are not fast enough.
“I was told in the strategy meeting this morning that I would be five tenths a lap slower than the Red Bull so the fight is not with Max but hopefully that we would be able to fight the McLarens. But then the McLaren was also too quick for us.”
Hamilton’s initial reaction to the lights turning green was fine enough, but he lacked traction in the next phase, with Verstappen moving alongside the Mercedes and then ahead under braking for the first corner.
Forced wide by Verstappen, Hamilton then lost two further positions. First to Piastri at the same right-hander, before Norris also muscled his way ahead around the outside of the next bend. Hamilton had a nibble back at his countryman on the long run up to Turn 4 but Norris held firm.
A contrite Hamilton was straight on the radio. “Sorry about that, guys,” he said.
“Don’t sweat about it, Lewis,” came the reassuring response from Hamilton’s ever-upbeat race engineer, Peter Bonnington.
As Verstappen did what Verstappen does and controlled the race to perfection, Hamilton appeared rattled.
He questioned if his Mercedes team had turned down his engine after falling a dozen seconds back from Verstappen by the time he stopped for fresh rubber on lap 16.
He then expressed his exasperation at being cast more than 10 seconds behind third-placed Piastri, the Australian dropping behind Norris at the first round of stops.
“Where am I losing all the time?” he asked, adding: “It is just the car is slow.”
Bonnington then called on Hamilton to pick up the pace. But the despondent 38-year-old replied: “This is as fast as it goes, mate. That is what I have been saying.”
When he finally stopped for rubber for a second time with 20 laps to run, Hamilton dropped to fifth.
He wiped out a six-second deficit to Piastri inside a handful of laps, and at the start of lap 57 he breezed past the McLaren man at the first corner, before taking the chequered flag 39 seconds behind the all-conquering Verstappen.
“The Red Bull car is phenomenal,” added an envious Hamilton.
The Briton’s Mercedes team-mate George Russell started 18th and finished sixth, benefiting from a five-second penalty to Charles Leclerc who sped in the pit lane. Daniel Ricciardo was a commendable 13th on his first race back.