"This is the best result we could get"- Lewis Hamilton explains why he was unable to reach 'so fast' Max Verstappen at 2022 F1 French GP

Once Charles Leclerc binned his car in the wall, there was a moment before the Safety Car restart when Lewis Hamilton appeared to be in a strong position to challenge Max Verstappen for an improbable race win. The Red Bull driver had already pushed his hard tires for a few laps, while Hamilton's tires were brand new. As it turned out, Lewis Hamilton was able to keep Max Verstappen in check for a few laps but then the Red Bull inevitably pulled away.

The Mercedes driver was questioned if he felt there was an opportunity for him to have won the race, to which he said that the Red Bull was just too fast. Speaking to the media in a post-race press conference, Lewis Hamilton said:

“I was trying to keep up with Max [Verstappen]. He was just so fast. I was kind of keeping with him for like two, maybe two laps and then…but literally I’m full gas down the straight and he’s pulling away. That’s, I think, the biggest…one of the biggest deficits was the straight line today. So if you’re losing four tenths, whatever it is, three tenths whatever it is on the straight this, there’s nothing you can do about that.’’

In the end, the Mercedes driver admitted that this was the best result he could have got with the car under him. He said:

“So we’ve got to work to improve that for the future. And as I’m sure there’s a couple other places that we could be better. But yeah, if I pushed any more maybe I wouldn’t have seen the end of the race at the same position so I had to also keep in mind keeping the car in one piece and keeping the tyres there. This is the best result we could get.’’

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Lewis Hamilton: I wasn't expecting to fight for second place

Hamilton admitted that after FP1 on Friday, he wasn't expecting to fight for second place or even a podium finish and was pleasantly surprised with the kind of result the team was able to secure. He said:

“What a great result, considering we have been so far off all weekend and that I missed FP1. I wasn’t expecting to fight for second place or a podium, so this is a wonderful result for us. Our team has been amazing when it comes to reliability and it shows that with dedication and focus, we can slowly make our way up.’’

He added:

“We don’t have the same pace yet as the two teams at the front but today we were able to keep one of them at bay so a great result for us, everyone has worked really hard.’’

Lewis Hamilton has now scored four podiums in a row and is one of the most consistent drivers on the grid right now.