Vettel not surprised to be lapped by Hamilton in F1 Hungarian GP

Sebastian Vettel says being lapped by eventual race winner Lewis Hamilton was expected as he finished sixth at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Vettel not surprised to be lapped by Hamilton in F1 Hungarian GP

Sebastian Vettel says being lapped by eventual race winner Lewis Hamilton was expected as he finished sixth at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix.

The German enjoyed a strong start to the race but a hesitant pit release when swapping to dry tyres dropped him down the field.

Vettel managed to make his way past team-mate Charles Leclerc and was running as high as fifth, before being overtaken by Red Bull's Alexander Albon in the closing laps.


When asked if he was surprised to be lapped by Mercedes in Hungary, he replied: “It was already clear he [Hamilton] would lap us before the race so it wasn’t a surprise.”

Vettel says his performance in Hungary was a fairer reflection of where Ferrari is at pace wise.

“It was back to normal. Obviously Austria one was the outlier. Austria two didn’t happen and now we are here. I think probably today was where we would finish - arguably fifth or sixth, probably not further up.”

Leclerc struggled for performance comparatively to Vettel and wasn't aided by Ferrari's decision to fit soft tyres - rather than mediums - after the first round of stops.

“It’s disappointing but we just need to work now,” Leclerc added. “To be honest, I think there was something wrong in the race. It just doesn’t match with what the car had in qualifying but also the day before on Friday and we’ve not changed much.

“We will be looking at the data to see what went wrong because the car was extremely hard on my side today.”

Ferrari sits fifth in the constructors' championship on 27 points, 13 points behind McLaren and Racing Point.

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