Belgian Grand Prix Updates: Lewis Hamilton Places Third, Calls Finish A Bonus

Aug 29, 2016 09:10 AM EDT | Leian N.

After taking the 21st spot during the start of the Belgian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton managed to finish at the third place next to 1st runner-up Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo and champion Nico Rosberg. According to Hamilton, his rank was a bonus after having to deal with a 10-point drop due to his three new engines.

Last Sunday, the Mercedes team had a fun ride at the Belgian Grand Prix for taking both the gold and bronze as Nico Rosberg finished first while Hamilton placed 3rd despite his 10-point drop and after he started off at the back of the grid.

As reported by BBC, Hamilton was made to choose between having to lose 10 points or do away with three engines. The racer chose the latter which landed him on the 21st spot when the race started.

During the first lap pf the Belgian Grand Prix, Hamilton was able to catch up on the race and up his rank when Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel, and Kimi Raikkonen had to slack off due to a collision. Furthermore, racers Jenson Button and Pascal Wehrlein also had to bow out during the first lap also due to a collision which garnered Hamilton the fifth rank after nine laps.

According to the report, when Mercedes switched strategies during the red flag, they could have bagged both gold and silver but Hamilton was unable to kick Red Bull racer Daniel Ricciardo for second place by the end. Thus, Hamilton only placed third in the Belgian Grand Prix.

In other news, Auto Sport reported that Hamilton initially thought that he wasn't going to finish the game but got lucky when other drivers slacked off. In fact, the Mercedes racer felt that lading third place was already a huge bonus for him after having to deal with a ten-point minus to his overall score.

During an interview, Hamilton revealed that knowing his three new engines would cause him to lose points, he just went on with the race and tried as much as he could to earn as many points as he can.

Lewis Hamilton also pointed out that beating his number one rival in the Belgian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso, was also such a bonus and saw Nico Rosberg's victory as a Sunday drive. 

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