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Lewis Hamilton's drive at the 2021 Sao Paolo Grand Prix in Brazil has been hailed as "F1 folklore" by fellow Briton and ex-F1 driver Jolyon Palmer.
The seven-time champion famously overcame a 25-place grid penalty in total to take the win in Brazil and keep his world championship challenge alive.
Palmer, who last drove in F1 for Renault in 2017, now spends most of his time analyzing the sport for BBC Radio 5 and the official F1 app. While compiling his list of key moments and star performers from the 2021 season, Palmer felt compelled to include Lewis Hamilton's Brazilian masterclass.
Calling it the best individual performance of the season, he wrote:
"It looked like Verstappen’s title was wrapped up on Friday night at Interlagos, when Hamilton was put to the back of the field after his car failed DRS checks post qualifying and had a further five-place grid drop looming for an engine change."
He went on to write:
"What happened next will go down in Formula 1 folklore. The recovery from 20th to fifth in just a 24-lap Sprint was majestic. Clearly Hamilton had the pace to charge, but the clinical nature of this rampage was that of an old school Hamilton we haven’t seen for a while: he took absolutely no prisoners."
Palmer concluded by writing:
"Having passed 15 cars in 24 laps, it seemed likely he could win from 10th on Sunday – but after another great start he came up against a feisty Verstappen. It was a dramatic fight with some contentious Verstappen defensee, but Hamilton claimed the victory and out of the ashes, kept his title fight alive. Superb."
Lewis Hamilton's Brazil Grand Prix triumph was "glorious," claimed football legend Pele
Brazilian football icon Pele was also full of praise for Lewis Hamilton shortly after the Briton claimed victory at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paolo.
He emulated long-time idol Ayrton Senna by celebrating his against-the-odds victory by holding up the Brazilian flag on his cool-down lap. The seven-time champion also chose to drape himself with the flag on the podium.
On his Instagram page, Pele wrote:
"A wonderful performance. A day as glorious for you, Lewis (Hamilton), as for us Brazilians. It's great to see an F1 driver raise our flag on the podium. Thank you for being who you are."
Pele, who won three World Cups in football with Brazil, presented Lewis Hamilton with a signed Brazil jersey.
