“To have done it in the face of adversity” - Andrew Shovlin explains why he thinks Lewis Hamilton’s Brazil Grand Prix drive was his best yet

Mercedes' trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin spoke on F1’s official podcast F1 Nation about Lewis Hamilton’s against-all-odds victory at the Brazil Grand Prix. The Briton drove from 20th to fifth in the sprint race and from 10th to first in the main race at the Interlagos circuit.

Shovlin noted how despite the numerous adversities thrown their way by way of grid penalties as well as the tricky track conditions, Lewis Hamilton put in another of his impressive come-from-behind performances. He felt it was the Brit's best drive yet.

Speaking to Tom Clarkson on the podcast, Shovlin said:

“To have done that in the face of adversity where you are the fastest guy in qualifying but you are put right to the back. And to see his strength and determination right now is really impressive. So, at this moment, I haven’t thought of a better one.”

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Lewis Hamilton did not have pace advantage at Brazil Grand Prix, feels Andrew Shovlin

Despite the mental blow of getting disqualified from qualifying, Lewis Hamilton’s engineer felt that his drives in both the sprint and main races were praiseworthy, especially after the drama they faced over the course of the weekend.

Explaining the difficulty of picking Lewis Hamilton’s best drive, Shovlin said:

“I'm racking my brains to think of a better drive of his, and the difficulty with Lewis when you get questions like this is there are quite a few of them that you can remember. But I think to have done that with a car that does not have the pace advantage over the competition that we’ve had in the years gone by.”

The Brazil Grand Prix was the 101st victory of Lewis Hamilton’s F1 career, making it difficult for fans and analysts in the sport to pick their favorites. The win helped him reduce the gap to his title contender Max Verstappen to 14 points, down from 21 heading into the main race.

The Briton’s commendable drive displayed his determination to bag an unprecedented eighth world title, as opposed to merely defending it from the challenger. Meanwhile, Mercedes currently lead Red Bull Racing in the constructors' championship by 11 points following the Brazil Grand Prix.