Story
17.04.2011
China
Shanghai
Lewis Hamilton’s victory in Shanghai is a classic example of how to react in adversity. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes have trouble starting Lewis Hamilton’s car before the start of the race, and the engine floods with fuel.
Mechanics manage to get Hamilton out of the garage and on to the grid with just 35 seconds to spare before the 15 minute cut-off – any later and he would have had to start the race from the pit-lane.
Hamilton drives from the garage without all of the bodywork fitted to his car, and the team finishes its work on grid – not the ideal preparation. But if the mechanics’ response is good, Hamilton’s is phenomenal.
Both he and team-mate Jenson Button beat polesitter Sebastian Vettel on the opening lap, then Hamilton puts in a stunning series of fastest laps, employing a three-stop strategy that outfoxes Vettel’s two-stop and Hamilton becomes the first driver to win more than once in Shanghai.
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