The 2019 Monaco Grand Prix has to be one of the most nerve-wracking races for Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes driver nursed his W10 home on 68 laps old medium tires amidst a battle for the lead against Max Verstappen.

During many points in the race, Hamilton questioned the strategy of the team of putting him on the medium tires. It was especially stressful for him, as he could see the performance of the tire degrading each lap from the end. But he managed to hold on to his lead in the iconic streets of Monaco to win his 77th career win.

While speaking to the camera in the engineers’ debrief, Mercedes chief strategist James Vowles looked relaxed and was waiting for Hamilton to give him a hug.

Lewis Hamilton takes revenge on James Vowles for his 2019 Monaco GP strategy

Vowles explained why the team put the then 5-time world champion on medium tires for 68 laps. The British engineer mentioned it was a tossup for them between medium and hard tires for the end of the race. But he defended the strategy by mentioning that it brought excitement to the race for everyone.

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“I think it was pretty clear in hindsight that hard would have given the same results. Just maybe a little bit less stress and we wanted to add a bit of excitement… I think the talk with Lewis would be a little bit more fun.”

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“I suspect Lewis will come back and say, why did you fit those tires? To which I’ll respond, we shouldn’t have put on those tires, and I hope he gives me a hug and a slight expression of joy,” said Vowles.

But Vowles could not have been more wrong about Hamilton‘s reaction to the strategy. As the British driver barged in to spray with champagne and had some choice words for him. “That’s for putting me on medium tires for 68 laps!” said Lewis.

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It was an epic reaction to an equally epic drive from the Mercedes driver. The win will always stay special for him and the team as it was the weekend where they lost Niki Lauda. But Hamilton paid tribute to him in the best possible way.