David Coulthard tells Lewis Hamilton what he did that was ‘pretty special’ at the Spanish Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton ended his long wait to return to the podium during a Grand Prix after finishing behind Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in Spain.

The seven-time world champion recorded a top-three finish in the Sprint Race in China but hadn’t been on the rostrum for an official race since the 2023 Mexican Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton would have loved for his final season at Mercedes before joining Ferrari to have been a lot stronger than it has been.

However, after 10 race weekends, he’s finally in the mix with the quickest cars although he still couldn’t reach the same level as Verstappen and Norris who appear to be in a league of their own right now.

Speaking after the Spanish Grand Prix, via the FIA’s official website, David Coulthard was very impressed with Hamilton and highlighted one aspect of his performance in Barcelona that was ‘pretty special’.

Hamilton hasn’t won a race since the end of the 2021 season but would love to go two better than he did on Sunday and stand on the top step of the podium before he leaves the team who have helped him claim six championships over the past ten years.

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David Coulthard shares what Lewis Hamilton did that was ‘pretty special’ in Spain

Lewis Hamilton admitted at the Monaco Grand Prix that he didn’t expect to out-qualify George Russell again this season, although technical director James Allison has had his say on that claim.

Hamilton proved himself wrong in Spain, beating Russell by the incredible fine margin of two-thousandths of a second.

Despite beating his teammate over one lap on Saturday, it was Russell who got the jump on everyone heading into turn one.

Hamilton bemoaned his ‘really bad’ start and saw his teammate fly past him, Verstappen and Norris to take the lead into turn one.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t keep the Dutchman behind him for long but frustrated Norris for just long enough to prevent him from challenging for the lead of the race.

Where Hamilton showed his experience over Russell was in the management of his tyres and the final stint, he was able to avoid the slow-running hard compound to come home in third and secure that much-needed podium.

At the end of the race, Coulthard admitted that Hamilton’s overtaking at turn one was ‘pretty special’.

Carlos Sainz may not agree as he was one driver who watched the Brit battle past him into the chicane.

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Lewis Hamilton returns to the podium at the Spanish Grand Prix

Interviewing Hamilton after the race, Coulthard said: “Lewis [Hamilton], the crowd appreciates seeing you here.

“Amazingly, Mexico was the last time last year that you had a podium. But this weekend, you were on it, and your passing at Turn 1 was pretty special today.”

Hamilton replied: “Yeah, it’s been a good day, been a good weekend, a solid weekend.

“I have to say a big thank you to the team because they’ve been training so hard in the pit stops. The strategy in the pit stops was really on point.

“Unfortunately, a bit like Lando [Norris], I got a really bad start and obviously lost ground to the Ferraris.

“So it was a bit of a battle to get back to where I am now. I think ultimately, with a better start, we would have… I don’t know if we could have really held on to the guys ahead, but I don’t think we would have been as far behind as we are today.”

The Austrian Grand Prix tends to suit Red Bull and is infamously one of Lando Norris’s favourite tracks.

That might make it difficult for Mercedes to continue their strong recent trend especially as Frederic Vasseur will expect a response from Ferrari.

However, after years of one driver dominating the sport – which Hamilton very much enjoyed in the past – there are no guarantees heading into each race.

It means Hamilton can begin to use the racecraft he’s developed over the past two decades to his advantage over his closest rivals.