Hamilton calls Spain F1 win 'a rejuvenating experience'

Lewis Hamilton called his victory in Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix “a rejuvenating experience” after overcoming his early-season struggles to extend his lead at the top of the Formula 1 drivers’ championship.

Hamilton trailed Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel in the standings until the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the end of last month, inheriting the lead with two laps to go after struggling for pace throughout the Baku weekend.

Hamilton delivered his most complete performance of the season so far in Spain, converting pole position into victory with a 20-second advantage over teammate Valtteri Bottas in second place, and hailed the “synergy” he felt with the car after the race.

Following his early difficulties in 2018, Hamilton admitted after the race that he felt reinvigorated by his victory, having complete confidence in himself and the Mercedes team through the race.

"I think today has been a rejuvenating experience,” Hamilton said. “People probably think it was an easy race and I was cruising but I wasn’t cruising. I was comfortable, but at no point did I feel like I was going to lose it.

“I was pushing every single lap, using it as a test bench to understand what I liked about the balance, how can I play with it more, how can I squeeze more out of it, and do all sorts to understand what more I can get from.

“It is the greatest feeling to come here and have that kind of performance and then win convincingly. That is what anybody with a win wants to do, do it that way. It is definitely a great, great feeling and I think you could probably see from my energy when I got out the car.

“I am going to sleep like a baby tonight because I know I did my job this weekend to the maximum and I didn’t leave anything on the table. There is no better feeling.”