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Lewis Hamilton produced his best drive since joining Ferrari in Canada, fighting through the field and executing a decisive overtake on Max Verstappen in the closing stages to secure second place behind Kimi Antonelli. Damon Hill watched the whole thing and reached for a comparison that has not been made in some time.
A Race That Delivered Everything
Hamilton and Verstappen both started from the third row in Montreal, having benefited from McLaren's disastrous decision to switch to intermediate tyres. That strategic error by the team that should have been challenging for the win moved both Hamilton and Verstappen up the order behind the two Mercedes cars.
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Verstappen managed to get past Hamilton in the opening phase, and Hamilton's cause was briefly set back by an error at the chicane at turns eight and nine where he ran through the grass and lost a few seconds. He kept his composure and stayed in Verstappen's wheel tracks.
With seven laps remaining Hamilton made his move around the outside of turn one. Verstappen used his override boost mode to try to resist but could not hold position. Hamilton had second place and held it to the flag.
Hill's Verdict
Damon Hill, who won his world championship at Williams in 1996 and knows what a proper racing driver looks like when they are performing at their best, did not hold back on social media after the race.
"That overtake by Hamilton on Max was pure magic. He was incredibly strong all weekend. It even reminded me of Nigel Mansell."
The Mansell comparison carries specific weight. Mansell remains the last British driver to have won races for Ferrari, doing so in 1989 and 1990. If Hamilton can find the results in 2026 that his recent form suggests are possible, he could yet enter a very exclusive piece of Ferrari history.
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