Lewis Hamilton paid tribute to Mercedes after securing a record-breaking 92nd Formula 1 win at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
The Briton recovered from a tricky opening lap in damp conditions to catch and pass Valtteri Bottas en route to a dominant victory, eventually crossing the line 25 seconds clear of his Mercedes teammate.
And shortly after surpassing the previous mark set by Michael Schumacher, Hamilton acknowledged it wouldn’t have been possible without the work done by Mercedes, with 71 of his wins coming at the Brackley-based team.
“I owe it all to these guys here and back at the factory, for just their tremendous work,” he told Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle.
“They’re continuously innovating and pushing the barrier even higher every year, the target, it’s been just such a privilege working with them, I’m very grateful for all the moments.
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“The reliability has been absolutely incredible, thanks to Mercedes and to Petronas and all our partners who continuously are pushing.
“No one is sitting back on this success, everyone is pushing, pushing and pushing and that’s the most incredible thing to be surrounded by because it inspires you, and that collaboration, there’s nothing quite like it.”
Hamilton also admitted the level of success he’s had was simply incomprehensible when he made the decision to leave McLaren at the end of 2012.
“I could only have ever dreamed of being where I am today. I didn’t have a magic ball when I chose to come to this team and partner with these great people, but here I am and what I can tell you is that I’m trying to make the most of it every single day,” he continued.
“Everything that we do together we’re all rowing in the same direction and that’s really why you’re seeing the success that we’re having.
“It’s going to take some time for it to fully sink in, I was still pushing flat-out coming across the line, I’m still very much in race mode mentally, I can’t find the words at the moment.”
As for the race itself, though it seemed calm behind the wheel after the early drama, Hamilton confirmed what he said on the radio about feeling cramp.
“Oh yeah, It’s an incredibly physical sport but I had a cramp in my right calf,” he explained.
“I was lifting quite often down the main straight, it was about to pull, pretty painful.
“But I had to somehow get through it because it is what it is, you can’t lift the whole lap.”
Victory on Sunday also made Portimao the 27th different circuit Hamilton has won at during his career.