Hungarian Grand Prix produces a race to remember for ages

Zee Media Bureau/Rajdeep Saha

New Delhi: Rain, wet tracks, water splashing the helmet, crashes, spin and finally an outstanding overtaking run saw the Formula One race in Budapest, Hungary produce one of the best races in recent years. Daniel Ricciardo`s swift determination to pass Lewis Hamilton followed by another breathtaking run to surpass Ferrari`s Fernando Alonso in the death lit up an eventful Sunday afternoon in Hungary. Firstly he overtook Hamilton on turn two after the Briton was seeming to struggle with his tyre grip. And then in the next lap he passed Alonso on turn one who before that was looking set for a first race win this year. It was a remarkable sight. For Ricciardo and Red Bull it was a surprise that served purpose after breaking the dominance of Mercedes in an enthralling battle. For the former Torro-Rosso driver the year has been an outstanding one given his status as a debutant for the big fish, Red Bull. The Australian has notably put four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel off his guard and has been the highlight of the season which has seen Mercedes rule the racing circuit. This was his second win of the year following the Canadian Grand Prix earlier. Lewis Hamilton`s resurgence from a pit lane start to finish third was another highlight of the race. By finishing third, Hamilton matched Sebastian Vettel`s performance in the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as the last man to finish on the podium having started from the pit lane. He reduced the gap atop to 11 points off teammate Nico Rosberg. Hamilton was touch lucky after a damage to the front wing end plate on the left side saw him run wide off the track and his car took a wild spin. In the first lap too he went off at turn two. After his car that caught fire on the back on Saturday, Mercedes team worked together the entire night and put up a car that saw him breathe life into his racing. Team Mercedes expressed their views on social micro-blogging site Twitter.

What a result for the crew too - up late into the night building that car and rewarded with a podium finish. Get in there! #F1 #HungarianGP

— MERCEDES AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) July 27, 2014

Another interesting aspect of the race was the rivalry between Rosberg and Hamilton. On the 47th lap, even after getting team orders to let Rosberg pass, Hamilton didn`t pay heed and continued to chase Alonso. Rosberg was one second behind and had one more stop to make after being on the option tyre.

Bonnington: "Let Nico past on the main start/finish straight." Hamilton: "I'm not slowing down for Nico." #F1— F1 Fanatic Live (@f1fanaticlive) July 27, 2014

Their rivalry has been a widespread phenomenon this season as both drivers have shown their discomfort in allowing the other any sort of advantage. On Sunday, Rosberg finished behind Hamilton after leading the race early on and leading pole position too. For Force India it was a race to forget. Both Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez retired early on. Perez was lucky to escape unhurt after crashing onto a wall. Caterham`s Marcus Ericsson too crashed and Vettel survived a similar incident as the race marked two safety laps and six retirements. On a wet day the last ten laps emerged as the most spectacular moment as all the three top drivers brought out their differential strategies and tactics but in the end it was Ricciardo who emerged supreme. One will feel for Alonso given the condition of his car towards the end, but his holding off Hamilton was a class-act affair! As the summer break starts, Hungarian Grand Prix produced a scintillating affair that one will remember for ages to come.