Lewis Hamilton has said winning the British Grand Prix for a final time with Mercedes "couldn't have been more magical." The seven-time drivers' champion moves to Ferrari at the end of the season, and prior to taking victory at Silverstone, he had not won a grand prix since Saudi Arabia in 2021. The prolonged winless spell cast doubt over whether he claim one final victory with the team has has spent the past 12 seasons with. However, he was able to vanquish that possibility, and followed up at the Belgian Grand Prix, just two rounds later. "Everyone was talking about it being this fairy tale," Hamilton told Esquire when asked what it was like to finally win again - and to do so on home turf. "And it really, really was unexpected. "Going into that weekend, I had no idea that that was going to be possible. And it had been such a long time. So many thoughts cross your mind. Some of them you start to potentially believe in, bit by bit."
Mercedes started the season in a similar position to the situation is has found itself in since F1 re-introduced ground effects at the start of 2022. Whilst the Brackley team has remained relatively competitive, fighting for podium finishes on a regular basis, it picked up just one grand prix victory in the first two years of the new regulations. To make matters worse, the eight-time constructors' champions had regressed over winter, starting the current campaign with the fourth-fastest car. However, the rate of development for the W15 has been impressive, and Mercedes has thrust itself back into race-winning contention, winning three of the past four - allowing Hamilton the opportunity to break his victory duck in the process. "Finally, I had that day when I was able to excel, and we excelled as a team, and it just kind of shuts that all down. And it helps you rebuild again," he explained. "So it was really great to be able to do it at home, in my home country, with my family around. The last race in Mercedes at Silverstone. It couldn’t have been more magical."
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