Lewis Hamilton earned a last grasp third place finish at the Bahrain GP and race winner Charles Leclerc was surprised to see him there.
The 2022 season opener got off to a relatively quiet start for Mercedes. This was before Red Bull’s misfortune played to their and Hamilton’s advantage.
Max Verstappen’s car had to be retired due to a fuel pump issue, followed by Sergio Perez’s car (for the same reason). This allowed Hamilton to pounce and take home an unexpected third place finish.
Meanwhile, Ferrari’s start to the campaign could not have been better. The Italian outfit earned a 1-2 finish with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz taking first and second respectively. This was their first race victory since Singapore in 2019.
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After the race, when the drivers got out of their car, Leclerc seemed fairly surprised to see Hamilton there. The Monegasque spent most of the race defending his lead against Verstappen, and a last grasp podium finish for the 37-year old wasn’t in anyone’s books.
Hamilton got out of his W13, and congratulated a jubilant Leclerc on the win. At first, Leclerc didn’t say anything, but when Hamilton was walking back after exchanging a handshake with Sainz, the Ferrari driver said, “You f**king finished third!”
Hamilton congratulates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on their win
Ferrari’s return to glory was a long time coming. It’s still early days in the 2022 F1 season, but everything points towards the Maranello outfit going in the right direction.
Being the most successful team in F1 history, many wanted them to see them return to winning ways. It turns out, Hamilton is one of them. Speaking to the media after the race, the Mercedes driver said he’s happy about Ferrari’s return to prominence.
“So happy to see them doing well again,” he said. “They’re such a historic epic team so it’s great to see Charles and Carlos up there.”
“This is really the best result we could have got. Of course, it was unfortunate for the other two drivers but we did the best we could and we’re grateful for these points. ”
Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes will be looking to make further progress at the Saudi Arabian GP next weekend.
