BUDAPEST, Hungary, CMC – Mechanical problems forced British driver Lewis Hamilton out of contention as Red Bull’s Mark Webber won the Hungarian Grand Prix yesterday, to snatch the lead in the Formula One drivers’ standings.
The 25-year-old Hamilton, whose paternal grandparents are Grenadian, retired on lap 24 with gearbox problems after starting from fifth on the grid.
Webber, who along with teammate Sebastien Vettel controlled the front row for the race at the Hungaroring circuit, took the chequered flag in one hour, 41:05.571 minutes to finish ahead of Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso.
Vettel finished third after starting on pole while Ferrari’s Felipe Massa sneaked in to grab fourth place.
Hamilton, who begun the race on top the drivers standings, now lies second on 157 points behind Webber, with Vettel third on 151.
The McLaren driver remained optimistic about his chances, despite losing the lead in the championship.
“It’s a pity to have a fault at this stage in the year, but that’s racing. When you push the car to the limit, these things can happen,” Hamilton said.
“We’ll learn from this, though, and we’ll just have to work even harder to make sure we don’t have any further problems this year, and that we can catch back up to the front-runners – which I’m certain we’ll be able to do.”
Hamilton has now missed out in the last four events, with his last win coming at the Canadian Grand Prix in mid-June.
The season will now head into a three-week break with the next race scheduled for Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium at month end.
