APEX RACEWIRE Newsroom
How Lewis Hamilton Survived Silverstone on Three Tyres Six Years Ago
Six years after the 2020 British Grand Prix, a look back at how Lewis Hamilton nursed a deflated Mercedes home ahead of Max Verstappen.
By Patrick Koster - 2026-08-02T11:35:00.000Z - 3 min read
Six years ago at Silverstone, Lewis Hamilton delivered one of Formula 1's most improbable victories by crossing the finish line on three working tyres. Having started from pole position, the Mercedes driver had controlled the 2020 British Grand Prix until a late series of tyre failures transformed a routine afternoon into a frantic battle for survival.
The strategy that created the dramatic finish was set in motion on lap 13 following a heavy crash for Daniil Kvyat. The resulting Safety Car prompted Mercedes to pit both Hamilton and teammate Valtteri Bottas for hard compound tyres, committing both cars to an exceptionally long second stint to reach the chequered flag.
For most of the race, the decision appeared safe as Hamilton held firm control over the field. Unseen structural strain was mounting on the front-left rubber across several cars, converting the final laps into an unexpected test of durability.
The unraveling began with three laps remaining when Bottas suffered a sudden front-left tyre failure while running in second place, dropping him to 11th out of the points. McLaren's Carlos Sainz suffered an identical fate on the final lap, falling from the top five down to 13th.
Mercedes alerted Hamilton to reduce his pace, but his front-left tyre deflated down the straight on the very last lap. The car ground along on a bare rim, scattering sparks across the tarmac as Hamilton managed the handling through the closing corners. He later described the sudden deflation on the straight as a heart-in-the-mouth feeling after everything had been smooth sailing until that moment.
Red Bull had called Max Verstappen into the pits for fresh rubber immediately after Bottas's failure, seeking to capture the extra point for fastest lap. That precautionary pit stop left Hamilton with a lead of over 30 seconds, but that cushion evaporated rapidly as the wounded Mercedes struggled along the track.
Hamilton recalled hearing the time gap drop from 30 seconds down to 20 seconds on his radio, describing the experience of hearing a rival close in on that final lap as one of the most horrible feelings. Verstappen set the fastest lap of the race but ran out of time, crossing the line just 5.856 seconds behind Hamilton, with Charles Leclerc taking third place for Ferrari 18 seconds back.
Hamilton admitted after the race that he nearly failed to get the car around the final two corners before securing the chequered flag. The victory marked his 87th career win in Formula 1, his seventh at Silverstone, and his third consecutive victory of the 2020 season, ahead of the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix held at the same circuit one week later.